Risk Assessment of Mycotoxins Intake through the Consumption of Maize, Peanuts, Rice and Cassava in C&amp;#244;te D’Ivoire

James Halbin Kouadio

doi:10.4236/fns.2022.131005

Abstract

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of filamentous fungi that colonize a wide range of crops, including cereals and oilseeds, both in the field and after harvest, especially during storage. Several studies carried out on the occurrence of mycotoxins in crops and their derived products such as maize, peanuts, rice and attieke (cassava product), reported substantial levels of Aflatoxins (AFs), Fumonisins (FBs), Ochratoxin A (OTA) and Zearalenone (ZEA). The aim of the present study was to analyze findings available on Aflatoxins, Ochratoxin A and Fusarium toxins occurrence in maize, peanuts, rice and attieke in order to assess the exposure level and cancers risk in the Ivorian population. References and publications related to OTA in C?te d’Ivoire were searched and selected. Medline/PubMed, Elsevier Bibliographic Databases, BioInfoBank Library, DOAJ (Directory of Open Acess Journal), Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences and https://medwelljournals.com/home.php were used as databases. Data available showed Estimated Daily Intake (EDI) of AFs and OTA were above of their Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) as recommended by the Joint FAO/WHO Experts Committee on Food Additives through rice, maize, peanut and attieke consumption in C?te d’Ivoire. In addition, there is a veritable incidence of cancers with the abundant and frequent consumption of foods maize, rice, peanuts and attieke. However, maize and rice seemed to be sources of FBs

Highlights

The term of mycotoxins refers to natural products with low molecular weight, produced as secondary metabolites by filamentous fungi that colonize a wide range of crops, including cereals and oilseeds, both in the field and after harvest, especially during storage [1]
Aflatoxins that occur naturally are classified as human carcinogens (Group 1); Ochratoxins and fumonisin are classified as possible human carcinogens (Group 2B), while trichothecenes and Zearalenone are not recognized as human carcinogens (Group 3) [4]
After the identification of more than 300 mycotoxins, Aflatoxins, Ochratoxin A, Zearalenone and Fumonisins remain those usually found in African countries of only about 20 mycotoxins known to occur in foodstuffs at sufficient levels and frequencies to cause food safety concerns [5]

Summary

Introduction

The term of mycotoxins refers to natural products with low molecular weight, produced as secondary metabolites by filamentous fungi that colonize a wide range of crops, including cereals and oilseeds, both in the field and after harvest, especially during storage [1]. Due to their thermal and chemical stability, mycotoxins can be found in processed foods of plant origin, or by transfer, in food products of animal origin such as milk, eggs, meat and offal from animals consuming contaminated feed [2].

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