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Abstract
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is one of the most important mycotoxins that is found in food and feed products. It has proven toxic properties, being primarily known for its nephrotoxicity and carcinogenicity to certain animal species. OTA is produced by several species of Aspergillus and Penicillium that can be found in a wide variety of agricultural products, which makes the presence of OTA in these products common. Many countries have statutory limits for OTA, and concentrations need to be reduced to as low as technologically possible in food and feed. The most important measures to be taken to control OTA are preventive in order to avoid fungal growth and OTA production. However, these measures are difficult to implement in all cases with the consequence of OTA remaining in agricultural commodities. Remediation processes are often used to eliminate, reduce or avoid the toxic effects of OTA. Biological methods have been considered increasingly as an alternative to physical and chemical treatments. However, examples of practical applications are infrequent. This review will focus on the (i) known microorganisms and enzymes that are able to biodegrade OTA; (ii) mode of action of biodegradation and (iii) current applications. A critical discussion about the technical applicability of these strategies is presented.
Highlights
The discovery of aflatoxins in the 1960s [1], with approximately 100,000 turkey poult deaths in England, was the seminal event that made the scientific community realize that mold secondary metabolites could be responsible for food and feed safety problems
Ochratoxin A (OTA) was purified and characterized from Aspergillus ochraceus Wilh. strain K-804 [2,3] isolated from sorghum grain, and proved to be acutely toxic to Pekin ducklings, mice and rats [4]
OTA is composed of a 7-carboxy-5-chloro-8-hydroxy-3,4-dihydro-3-R-methylisocoumarin moiety and a L-β-phenylalanine molecule, which are linked through the 7-carboxy group by an amide bond
Summary
The discovery of aflatoxins in the 1960s [1], with approximately 100,000 turkey poult deaths in England, was the seminal event that made the scientific community realize that mold secondary metabolites could be responsible for food and feed safety problems. OTA is the predominant compound detected in agriculture commodities and the most relevant to food and feed safety. OTA is produced by several Aspergillus species and Penicillium verrucosum and P. nordicum. The P. viridicatum strains that were reported as OTA producers were reclassified as P. verrucosum by Pitt [12]. Other species such as P. chrysogenum, P. brevicompactum, P. crustosum, P. olsonii and P. oxalicum have been claimed as OTA producers [13,14]. A careful confirmation of these findings is required since no other authors report the capacity of these species to produce OTA. Strains of a larger number of species are known to produce OTA in Aspergillus.
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