Abstract
Mycotoxigenic fungi and their toxins are a global concern, causing huge economic and health impacts in developing countries such as Ethiopia, where the mycotoxin control system is inadequate. This work aimed to review the occurrences of agriculturally essential fungi such as Aspergillus, Fusarium, and Penicillium and their major mycotoxins in Ethiopian food/feedstuffs. The incidents of crucial toxins, including aflatoxins (B1, B2, G1, G2, M1), fumonisins (B1, B2), zearalenone, deoxynivalenol, and ochratoxin A, were studied. The impacts of chronic aflatoxin exposure on liver cancer risks, synergy with chronic hepatitis B infection, and possible links with Ethiopian childhood malnutrition were thoroughly examined. In addition, health risks of other potential mycotoxin exposure are also discussed, and the impacts of unsafe level of mycotoxin contaminations on economically essential export products and livestock productions were assessed. Feasible mycotoxin mitigation strategies such as biocontrol methods and binding agents (bentonite) were recommended because they are relatively cheap for low-income farmers and widely available in Ethiopia, respectively. Moreover, Ethiopian mycotoxin regulations, storage practice, adulteration practice, mycotoxin tests, and knowledge gaps among value chain actors were highlighted. Finally, sustained public awareness was suggested, along with technical and human capacity developments in the food control sector.
Highlights
Fungi, commonly called molds, produce various secondary metabolites known as mycotoxins [1].They can colonize diversified food/feed commodities and produce mycotoxins during the pre-harvest stage in the field or post-harvest stage in the production chain [2,3]
Reported the presence of ochratoxin A (OTA) in 20% of teff flour collected from Addis Ababa. These results indicate that OTA contamination is a serious health concern for Ethiopia because injera is a daily meal for majority of people in Ethiopia
Since 2002, AFs have been recognized as Group 1 human carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) [66], and can act synergistic with hepatitis B virus (HBV) to increase the possibility of chronic liver diseases (CLD) or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) [15,76,77]
Summary
Commonly called molds, produce various secondary metabolites known as mycotoxins [1]. They can colonize diversified food/feed commodities and produce mycotoxins during the pre-harvest stage in the field or post-harvest stage in the production chain [2,3] Mycotoxins such as aflatoxins (AFs), fumonisins (FUMs), deoxynivalenol (DON), ochratoxin A (OTA), and zearalenone (ZEN) are agriculturally important [4], and dietary mycotoxins exposures are associated with many chronic health risks, such as cancer [5], immune suppression, and digestive, blood, and nerve defects [6]. The sub-Saharan African region is highly dependent on rain-fed agriculture with majority (80%) of smallholding farmers practicing a crop livestock mixed farming system Countries in this region are highly dependent on agriculture for food security, export market, and rural livelihoods. The impacts of mycotoxins on public health and the economy are discussed, mycotoxin tests and knowledge gaps among value chain actors in Ethiopia are highlighted, and feasible mitigation strategies along with future perspectives are provided
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