Survey of Aflatoxins and Ochratoxin A in Spices from Brazilian Market

Abstract

The incidence of aflatoxins and ochratoxin A in spices purchased from São Paulo State, Brazil was investigated. A total of 180 black pepper (Piper nigrum L.), colorífico (mixture of cornmeal or cassava flour with powdered annatto, Bixa orellana) ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), nutmeg (Myristica fragrans), paprika (Capsicum annuum L.), and turmeric (Curcuma longa) were analyzed with a modified methods by using immunoaffinity column for clean-up and liquid chromatography/fluorescence detector for separation and quantification. Analytical methods were optimized for each spice, focusing mainly on the extraction step. OTA recoveries ranged from 65-102%. AFs recoveries were >70% except for AFG2. The average levels of AFs and OTA in black pepper, colorífico and turmeric samples were less than 2 ng/g. Twenty-five ginger samples (100%) contained OTA 0.10 -7.10 ng/g and 21 samples (84%) contained AFs 0.10 -9.55 ng/g. Twentynine nutmeg samples (100%) contained OTA 0.92 -65.49 ng/g and AFs 2.71 -48.67 ng/g. Thirty paprika samples (100%) contained OTA, 0.75 -147.18 ng/g and twenty-two samples (73%) contained AFs, 0.11 -14.92 ng/g. AFs and OTA in nutmeg and paprika could represent a food safety issue in Brazil.

Simultaneous Detection of Ochratoxin A and Aflatoxins in Industrial and Traditional Red and isot Pepper Flakes along with Dietary Exposure Risk Assessment

“…In some cases, monoclonal IAC extraction of AFs resulted in lower recovery for AFG 2 (<70%). 19 Aligning with the current results, Trucksess et al 38 stated that IACs containing AFs-specific monoclonal antibodies had higher recovery rates than those containing both AFs-OTA-specific antibodies. In general, multimycotoxin IAC resulted in lower recoveries for AFG 2 .…”

“…However, Brera et al compared the performance of single- (AflaPrep and OchraPrep) and multimycotoxin (AflaOchraPrep) IACs in the recovery of paprika samples, which yielded the same (85, 84, and 70% for AFB 1 , AFB 2 , and AFG 2 ) or even higher (from 75 to 78% for AFG 1 and from 90 to 96% for OTA, respectively). In some cases, monoclonal IAC extraction of AFs resulted in lower recovery for AFG 2 (<70%) . Aligning with the current results, Trucksess et al stated that IACs containing AFs-specific monoclonal antibodies had higher recovery rates than those containing both AFs-OTA-specific antibodies.…”

“…Furthermore, red pepper is a suitable substrate for a variety of mycotoxins; particularly, AFs and OTA are prevalent in red peppers. 13 , 14 , 17 In this regard, the natural occurrence of AFs and OTA in red peppers was documented across the world, including Brazil, 14 , 19 Chile, 13 Greece, 20 Indonesia, 21 Lebanon, 16 India, 22 Italy, 17 , 23 Nigeria, 24 and South Africa. 18 Therefore, research into mycotoxins in red peppers is critical for both domestic and international trade along with public health.…”

“…Aspergillus section Flavi and Nigri were found more frequently than Penicillium and Fusarium species in Capsicum spp. , Mycotoxins can contaminate red peppers, particularly during harvesting, drying, processing, storage, and transportation. , Many mycotoxins, including AFs (total AFs), , OTA, zearalenone, fumonisins, deoxynivalenol, trichothecenes, citrinin, sterigmatocystin, and roquefortine C, were detected in red peppers. Furthermore, red pepper is a suitable substrate for a variety of mycotoxins; particularly, AFs and OTA are prevalent in red peppers. ,, In this regard, the natural occurrence of AFs and OTA in red peppers was documented across the world, including Brazil, , Chile, Greece, Indonesia, Lebanon, India, Italy, , Nigeria, and South Africa . Therefore, research into mycotoxins in red peppers is critical for both domestic and international trade along with public health.…”

Deep Genotypic Species Delimitation of Aspergillus Section Flavi Isolated from Brazilian Foodstuffs and the Description of Aspergillus annui sp. nov. and Aspergillus saccharicola sp. nov.

“…It has resistance to heat and can withstand temperatures of up to 250 • C, preventing its complete elimination in cooking and roasting processes [10,11]. The occurrence of OTA has been reported in cereals (corn, oats, barley, rice, and wheat) [12][13][14][15], nuts and peanuts [16], beer, grape juice, wine and grapes [17][18][19][20], coffee beans [21], cocoa [22,23], spices [24], meat products [25,26], cattle feedstuffs, and dairy products [27,28].…”