Fungal mycotoxins in food commodities: present status and future concerns
Abhay K. Pandey, Mahesh Kumar Samota, Abhishek Kumar, A. Sanches‐Silva, Nawal Kishore Dubey
Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems
Abstract
Mycotoxins are toxic secondary metabolites produced by fungi when they colonies the foodstuffs. These are potent toxins having severe health consequences in people, being mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic. In agricultural commodities, the contamination of mycotoxins is more prevalent. Several fungi can produce mycotoxins on agricultural products during harvest or in postharvest, and they have significant adverse effects on both animal and human beings. The most prevalent mycotoxins found in food commodities are aflatoxins and ochratoxins produced by Aspergillus species, ochratoxins and patulin produced by Penicillium , as well as fumonisins, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone produced by Fusarium species. Worldwide, fumonisins, patulin, aflatoxins, and ochratoxins, among others, are re