Abstract
Occurrence of toxigenic molds and mycotoxins on dried fruits is a worldwide problem, but limited information is available in China. A total of 220 dried fruits (raisins, dried apricots, dates and wolfberries) purchased from China were analyzed for 17 mycotoxins (i.e., Alternaria toxins, ochratoxin A (OTA), patulin (PAT) and trichothecenes) by UPLC-MS/MS, combined with a single-step cleanup. The result showed that at least one mycotoxin was detected in 142 samples (64.6%). The lowest incidence of contaminated samples was observed in dried apricots (48.2%), and the highest incidence in dried wolfberries (83.3%). The Alternaria toxins seemed to be the major problem in dried fruits, rather than OTA or PAT. Tenuazonic acid (TeA) was the predominant mycotoxin, in both frequency and concentration, ranging from 6.9 to 5665.3 μg kg−1, followed by tentoxin (TEN; 20.5%), and mycophenolic acid (MPA; 19.5%). Moreover, raisins are more likely to be contaminated with OTA than the other dried fruits. Penicillic acid (PA) was detected only in dried dates, and PAT was detected only in one apricot sample. In addition, our results also showed that the simultaneous presence of 2–4 mycotoxins was observed in 31.4% of dried fruits. TeA and TEN were the most frequent combination, detected in 29 (13.2%) samples, followed by TeA and MPA with a prevalence of 11.4%. Therefore, the results of this survey suggest the need for wider monitoring on the contamination of these mycotoxins, especially Alternaria toxins in agro-products, and indicate the importance of setting a maximum limit for Alternaria toxins in China.
Highlights
Fungi belonging to the genera Alternaria, Pencillium and Aspergillus are the major contributors to fruit spoilage and mycotoxin production [1,2,3]
Our results showed that the co-occurrence of mycophenolic acid (MPA) with ochratoxin A (OTA) and Alternaria toxins was detected in seven and 14 samples, respectively
To the best of our knowledge, no information is available on the occurrence of Alternaria toxins in dried fruits
Summary
Fungi belonging to the genera Alternaria, Pencillium and Aspergillus are the major contributors to fruit spoilage and mycotoxin production [1,2,3]. Fusarium species and the mycotoxins they produce (trichothecenes) were detected in fruits [4]. In addition to these destructive pathogens causing huge economic losses, mycotoxins are of concern to human health due to their acute or chronic toxic effects, such as carcinogenic, mutagenic and teratogenic effects [2,3]. Drying is one of the best preservation techniques for fruits, molds and mycotoxin production in dried fruits are still an important problem. This is due to the limits of drying conditions, as well as harvesting methods and sugar content or water activity in fruits.
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