Defining Mycotoxins Associated with Wheat Grains in Mosul Silo by ELISA

Abstract

The study aimed to identify fungi-contaminated with some varieties of wheat grains locals, as well as isolate fungi-contaminated with grains imported wheat in Silo of Mosul city, and estimate the level of mycotoxins ochratoxin, zearalenone, and aflatoxin in them by ELISA method. Results showed that the local wheat variety, Ebaa 99, showed the highest percentage of appearance in Aspergillus flavus, was 63.15%, while the lowest appearance of fungi was Mucor spp. With a percentage of 2.47%, the variety Rasheed showed the highest percentage of A. flavus, which was 49.12%, while the lowest appearance was of Rhizopus spp. With a percentage of 2.29%, As well as in the variety Al-Baraka A. flavus showed the highest percentage, which was 5.453%, and the lowest percentage was Cladosporium spp by 9.43%. The contaminated fungi differed from the imported varieties and the percentage of their appearance. In the Canadian variety, the highest appearance of A. flavus was 63.72%, and A. dematatus was the least appearance with 5.42%. The fungus A. flavus also appeared in the American variety, with the highest appearance of 43.17%. The least appearance was Fusarium oxysporum at 5.34%. In the Australian variety, the highest appearance was found in A. flavus, at 54.03%, and the fungus Fusarium spp. was the least appeared fungi, at 1.96%. Estimation of mycotoxins indicates that the aflatoxin amount in the variety Ebaa 99 samples was 34.55 ppm, while its amount of ochratoxin and zearalenone was 21.75 ppm and 0.23 ppm, respectively. Canadian variety grains had the lowest aflatoxin content, with the highest ochratoxin. Australian variety grains had the lowest content of aflatoxin, ochratoxin, and zearalenone amount 12.29 ppm, 0.82 ppm, and 11.51 ppm, respectively.