Ochratoxin A (OTA) is one of the most important mycotoxins that is found in food and feed products. It has proven toxic properties, being primarily known for its nephrotoxicity and carcinogenicity to certain animal species. OTA is produced by several species of Aspergillus and Penicillium that can be found in a wide variety of agricultural products, which makes the presence of OTA in these products common. Many countries have statutory limits for OTA, and concentrations need to be reduced to as low as technologically possible in food and feed. The most important measures to be taken to control OTA are preventive in order to avoid fungal growth and OTA production. However, these measures are difficult to implement in all cases with the consequence of OTA remaining in agricultural commodities. Remediation processes are often used to eliminate, reduce or avoid the toxic effects of OTA. Biological methods have been considered increasingly as an alternative to physical and chemical treatments. However, examples of practical applications are infrequent. This review will focus on the (i) known microorganisms and enzymes that are able to biodegrade OTA; (ii) mode of action of biodegradation and (iii) current applications. A critical discussion about the technical applicability of these strategies is presented.

Ochratoxin A is a mycotoxin present in several food products for which levels should be reduced. Chemical, physical, and biological methods have been proposed for the detoxification of mycotoxins, biological methods being the more promising ones. In this report, filamentous fungi isolated from Portuguese grapes were assessed for ochratoxin A degradation capabilities. It was observed that 51 of the 76 tested strains, predominantly aspergillus species, were able to degrade more than 80% of ochratoxin A added to the culture medium and that the most potent species (more than 95% of initial amount) were the black aspergilli, A. clavatus, A. ochraceus, A. versicolor, and A. wentii. Other fungi frequently isolated from grapes, such as Alternaria, Botrytis, Cladosporium, and Penicillium, also showed significant degradation capabilities. It was observed that the compounds obtained from the degradation of ochratoxin A by black aspergilli and by A. ochraceus and A. wentii strains were different.

The mycotoxin issue requires constant vigilance from economic, regulatory, and scientific agents to minimize its toxicological effects on human and animals. The implementation of good practices to avoid fungal growth and mycotoxin production on agricultural commodities is essential to achieve most restrictive safety standards; however, the contribution of novel technologies that may act on postharvesting and poststorage situations may be equally important. Several methodologies, more or less technologically advanced, may be used for this purpose. In this work, we review the role, contribution, and impact of irradiation technology to control the presence of fungi and mycotoxins in food and in feed. The effect of this technology on the viability of mold spores and on the elimination of mycotoxins is reviewed. A critical evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages of irradiation in this context is presented.

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB), which are commonly used in the production of fermented foods, have been gaining attention for their antifungal and antimycotoxin properties. In this work, the strain Lactobacillus plantarum UM55 was selected among other LAB for inhibiting the growth of Aspergillus flavus. Further, it is shown that cell-free supernatant (CFS) of this strain inhibits the production of aflatoxins (AFLs) by 91%. This inhibition was dependent on CFS pH, increased with increasing concentrations of CFS, and was independent of fungal growth, which was inhibited only by 32%. CFS was also effective in inhibiting the growth and AFLs production in A. parasiticus, A. arachidicola, A. nomius and A. minisclerotigenes. Further, L. plantarum UM55 CFS was analysed for the presence of organic acids and the main differences compared to controls were found in the levels of lactic acid, phenyllactic acid (PLA), hydroxyphenyllactic acid (OH-PLA), and indole lactic acid (ILA). These compounds were individually tested against A. flavus, with all of the compounds showing an inhibiting effect on fungal growth and AFLs production. PLA showed the stronger effects, and the obtained IC for the inhibition of growth and AFLs was of 11.9 and 0.87mg/mL, respectively. AFLs IC for ILA, OH-PLA and lactic acid were of 1.47, 1.80, and 3.92mg/mL, respectively. The antiaflatoxigenic properties of LAB depend on strain's capability to produce lactic acid, PLA, OH-PLA and ILA.