Mycotoxins in foods and feeds

Abstract EN

Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by naturally occurring fungi under certain ecological conditions.

Mycotoxins contaminated food and feed supplies could increase the economic and health risks to humans and animals.

Fumonisins are a group of recently discovered secondary metabolites produced by Fusarium spp.

especially F.

moniliforme and occasionally F.

proliferatum that commonly contaminate corn and corn screenings.

Human consumption of fumonisins- contaminated corn has been associated with increased incidence of esophageal cancer in South Africa, India and China.

Fumonisins have been shown to be associated with some major toxicological effects in animals including equine leukoencepalomalacia (ELEM) in horses and porcine pulmonary oedema (PPE) in pigs.

Experimentally high doses of fumonisins caused also adverse effects in cattle, sheep, goats, rabbits, poultry and catfish.

Although many domestic animals are susceptible, natural outbreaks of clinical toxicosis from fumonisins have only been reported in horses and swine.

Clinical signs of ELEM may include depression, convulsion, ataxia, sweating, apparent blindness, head pressing, recumbency, convulsions and death.

The pathognomic lesions are liquefactive necrosis of white matter of brain leaving fluid- filled cavities.

Actually affected horses may have centrilobular hepatic necrosis which may be present with or without brain lesions.

Signs of fumonisin toxicosis in swine (PPE) include poor weight gain, weakness, dyspnoea, cyanosis and death.

Lesions include pulmonary edema and hydeothorax, hepatic and pancreatic necrosis.