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In this study, we investigated the potential of aflatoxin B 1 (AFB1) production by five Aspergillus flavus strains previously isolated from sorghum grains on cereals (barley, maize, rice, wheat and sorghum), oilseeds (peanuts and sesame) and pulses (greengram and horsegram). Five strains of A. flavus were inoculated on all food grains and incubated at 25°C for 7 days; AFB1 was extracted and estimated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. All A. flavus strains produced AFB1 on all food grains ranging from 245.4 to 15 645.2 lg kg )1 . Of the five strains tested, strain Af 003 produced the highest amount of AFB1 on all commodities ranging from 2245.2 to 15 645.2 lg kg )1 . Comparatively, the AFB1 accumulation was high on rice grains ranging from 3125.2 to 15 645.2 lg kg )1 , followed by peanuts ranging from 2206.2 to 12 466.5 lg kg )1 . Less AFB1 accumulation was observed in greengram and sesame seeds ranging from 645.8 to 2245.2 and 245.4 to 2890.6 lg kg )1 , respectively. Our results showed that all food grains tested are susceptible to A. flavus growth and subsequent AFB1 production.

Studies on one of the protein rich pulses, horsegram (Dolichos biflorus L.) were carried out to know how far these low risk pulses are free from aflatoxin contamination under severe insect infestation in storage. A total of 150 stored seed samples of horsegram were analyzed for the presence of aflatoxins by collecting 25 samples each of undamaged and insect damaged seeds of all the three varieties (PDM-1, PHG-1 and HG-96). More than 33% of insect damaged seed samples were contaminated with aflatoxin B1 and B2, whereas less than 8% of the undamaged seed samples contain only low levels of aflatoxin B2. Higher levels of aflatoxin B1 (up to 130 μg/kg) were reported in insect damaged seed samples of all the three varieties under study. The levels of aflatoxin B2 were always lower than aflatoxin B1 of the corresponding seed samples with insect damage. Aflatoxin B1 was reported in both the undamaged and insect damaged seed samples of all the three varieties of horsegram. It is evident from the varietal response studies that PDM-1 and HG-96 varieties of horsegram are highly vulnerable to aflatoxin contamination whereas, PHG-1 variety is relatively less susceptible to it. In general, insect infestation leads to increase in fungal invasion (including aflatoxigenic fungi) and this further enhances the levels of aflatoxin contamination in horsegram seeds.

Mycotoxins are gaining increasing importance due to their deleterious effects on human and animal health. Chronic health risks are particularly prevalent in India where the diets of the people are highly prone to mycotoxins due to poor harvesting practices, improper storage and transport coupled with high temperature and moisture. This paper reviews disease outbreaks of mycotoxicoses other than aflatoxins in India due to ingestion of mycotoxincontaminated food. Ergotism is one of the earliest known outbreaks of mycotoxins reported in rural areas of western India associated with pearl millet grain. Trichothecenes have been involved in an acute human mycotoxicosis known as alimentary toxic aleukia in India during 1987 and were attributed to the consumption of mouldy wheat. Deoxynivalenol was implicated in an outbreak of emetic syndrome in Kashmir State. An outbreak of acute foodborne disease caused by fumonisin was reported in south India during 1995 affecting 1,424 people due to contaminated sorghum and maize. Rhizopus toxicosis was reported from Maharashtra State and caused the death of three people. These outbreaks continue to be a significant health problem of people in India, because their poor purchasing power compels them to consume contaminated food.