Fungal and Toxin Contaminants in Cereal Grains and Flours: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Cereal grains serve as the cornerstone of global nutrition, providing a significant portion of humanity’s caloric requirements. However, the presence of fungal genera, such Fusarium, Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Alternaria, known for their mycotoxin-producing abilities, presents a significant threat to human health due to the adverse effects of these toxins. The primary objective of this study was to identify the predominant fungal contaminants in cereal grains utilized in breadmaking, as well as in flour and bread. Moreover, a systematic review, including meta-analysis, was conducted on the occurrence and levels of mycotoxins in wheat flour from the years 2013 to 2023. The genera most frequently reported were Fusarium, followed by Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Alternaria. Among the published reports, the majority focused on the analysis of Deoxynivalenol (DON), which garnered twice as many reports compared to those focusing on Aflatoxins, Zearalenone, and Ochratoxin A. The concentration of these toxins, in most cases determined by HPLC-MS/MS or HPLC coupled with a fluorescence detector (FLD), was occasionally observed to exceed the maximum limits established by national and/or international authorities. The prevalence of mycotoxins in flour samples from the European Union (EU) and China, as well as in foods intended for infants, exhibited a significant reduction compared to other commercial flours assessed by a meta-analysis investigation.

Mycotoxin contamination in organic and conventional cereal grain and products: A systematic literature review and meta‐analysis

“…However, contrasting trends for OTA and AFL were also found in the two studies which assessed both OTA and AFL incidence in the same sets of (i) oat (Solarska et al, 2012) or (ii) barley and wheat (Bakutis et al, 2006) grain samples. It is therefore more likely that overall the pre-and especially post-harvest protocols used for organic cereals favored the development of mold species linked to OTA production (Aspergillus ochraceus, Aspergillus carbonarius, and Penicillium verrucosum, Penicillium cyclopium, Penicillium nordicum, Penicillium viridicatum) while protocols used for conventional cereals favored species (Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus nomius, and Aspergillus parasiticus) linked to AFL production (Deligeorgakis et al, 2023;Mukhtar et al, 2023;Perrone et al, 2020). However, the exact reasons for the different trends observed for OTA and AFL remain unclear.…”

“…Mycotoxins contamination of cereals and other crops has only recently been recognized as an important food safety and public health issue (Bryła et al, 2016;Deligeorgakis et al, 2023;Johns et al, 2022;Khaneghah et al, 2018).…”