Aflatoxins M1 and M2 in the milk of donkeys fed with naturally contaminated diet

Abstract

For its nutritional composition, donkey milk is an excellent alternative to breast milk for infants suffering from cow's milk allergies. Even in donkeys, a passage of aflatoxin from contaminated feed to milk could occur, as reported by many authors in other dairy species, but there are no studies on this topic. This work was aimed at studying the excretion of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) and M2 (AFM2) in milk after feeding trials with contaminated feed. Six donkeys, at the end of lactation, received a diet with naturally contaminated corn containing 202 and 11 μg.kg −1 of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and aflatoxin B2 (AFB2), respectively. Individual milk samples were analyzed for AFM1 and AFM2 for 15 days after the contaminated feed administration. Amounts of AFM1 and AFM2 were detected in the milk. The steady state condition was reached after 6 days. No AFM1 or AFM2 were detected in milk after 28 h from the last contaminated feed administration. The carryover from AFB1 to AFM1 and from AFB2 to AFM2 was found to be 0.02 and 0.31%, respectively. The results obtained in this study are thus a further step toward understanding the possible carryover of aflatoxin in donkey milk.

Studies on the Presence of Mycotoxins in Biological Samples: An Overview

“…QuEChERS methodology was satisfactorily performed for the analysis of several mycotoxins in human breast milk including DON, 3-ADON, NIV, FUX-N, DAS, NEO, T-2, HT-2, ZON and metabolites, OTA, STG, ENs, BEA, and AFs [ 110 ]. Direct IAC was used for ZON, AFM1, and AFM2 extraction from cow [ 22 ], human [ 111 ] and donkey [ 23 ] breast milk samples. DON, DOM-1, T-2 and HT-2 were extracted from bile and serum samples from pig and chicken by LLE using MeOH/H 2 O and EtOAc [ 112 , 113 ].…”

“…The ability to transform AFB1 in feed to AFM1 in milk has been examined in the past demonstrating that the extent of carry-over (2.5–5.8%) was directly correlated to milk yield in cows [ 22 ]. Low AFBs carry-over (AFM1 0.02% and AFM2 0.31%) was reported in donkey milk after naturally contaminated feed administration (AFB1: 202 and AFB2: 11 μg/kg), being not detectable after 28 h from the last contaminated feeding [ 23 ]. Negligible carry-over rates (0.0075% and 0%–0.0017%) were observed in cow milk after DON (2.62–5.24 mg/Kg) and ZON (0.33–0.66 mg/Kg) contaminated feed administration [ 24 ].…”

Immunochemical detection of mycotoxins in donkey milk

“…More recently, using a commercial AFM 1 EIA test kit from another producer, Malissiova and Manouras ( 2017 ) obtained AFM 1 -positive results (5–26.5 ng/l) for 5 out of 36 donkey milk samples from Greece farms. Considering the results of Tozzi et al ( 2016 ), some feed compound ingested by these animals must have been contaminated with AFB 1 at very high levels to achieve such results in milk, but unfortunately, Malissiova and Manouras ( 2017 ) did not analyse relevant feed components for AFB 1 , or provided an explanation for their findings. Using yet another commercial EIA for AFM 1 , Bilandzic et al ( 2014 ) obtained AFM 1 -positive results of 2–10 ng/l in donkey milk from Croatia (14 samples), but did not report the number of positives.…”

Mycotoxin Biomarkers of Exposure: A Comprehensive Review

“…In the past, the ability to transform AFB1 to AFM1 in milk has been examined, demonstrating that the extent of carry‐over (2.5% to 5.8%) was directly correlated to the milk‐yield in cows (Britzi et al., ). A low AF carry‐over (AFM1, 0.02% and AFM2, 0.31%) was reported in donkey milk after contaminated‐feed administration (AFB1, 202 μg/kg and AFB2, 11 μg/kg, after 28 hr) (Tozzi et al., ). Goats showed the ability to excrete AFM1 with the milk, and the maximal concentration was found after 120 hr.…”

“…A biomarker of effect is measured through a biochemical, physiological, behavioral, or other alteration within an organism that, depending upon the magnitude, can be recognized as associated with an established or possible health impairment or disease, while measuring an indicator of an inherent or acquired ability of an organism to respond to the challenge of exposure to a specific xenobiotic substance is called a biomarker of susceptibility . The chosen biological fluids to analyze biomarkers are urine or blood, although other options exist, including breast milk, hair, and feces (Sewram et al., ; Sewram, Mshicileli, Shephard, & Marasas, ; Tozzi et al., ). A challenge in biomarker‐driven research is to identify, validate and prove the relevance of the biomarkers.…”