Aflatoxin B1Contamination of Some Edible Grains Marketed in Nigeria

S A Odoemelam,C I Osu

doi:10.1155/2009/708160

Abstract

This paper presents an assessment of the aflatoxin B1contamination of some food grains (wheat, millet, Guinea corn, breadfruit and groundnut) from major markets in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The concentrations of aflatoxin B1obtained in the ranges from 17.01-20.53 µg kg–1for wheat, 34.00– 40.30 µg kg–1for millet, 27.22-36.13 µg kg–1for guinea corn, 40.06-48.59 µg kg–1for breadfruit and 74.03-82.12 µg kg–1for groundnut. Aflatoxin B1was detected in all the samples. There were significant differences (p<0.01) in the levels of aflatoxin B1determined in all the samples and the toxin contamination was not restricted to any particular section of the region. The presence of aflatoxins in grains constitutes a serious health hazard to both human beings and animals because of their toxic and carcinogenic property.

Highlights

This paper presents an assessment of the aflatoxin B1 contamination of some food grains (wheat, millet, Guinea corn, breadfruit and groundnut) from major markets in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria
This paper presents an assessment of the aflatoxin B1 contamination of some food grains from major markets in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria
The results show that the locations where the samples were collected had a significant effect on aflatoxin B1 levels (p < 0.05) except for wheat and Guinea corn for which aflatoxin B1 concentration did not vary significantly with some locations (p < 0.01)

Summary

Introduction

This paper presents an assessment of the aflatoxin B1 contamination of some food grains (wheat, millet, Guinea corn, breadfruit and groundnut) from major markets in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. A. flavus and A. parasiticus have been found during growth, harvest and storage of different foods and feeds[5]. Human exposure to aflatoxins can result directly from ingestion of contaminated foods or indirectly from consumption of foods from animals previously exposed to aflatoxin in feeds[15].

Results

Conclusion