Evaluation of extraction methods for the simultaneous analysis of simple and macrocyclic trichothecenes

Current methods for mycotoxins analysis and innovative strategies for their reduction in cereals: an overview

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by moulds in food that are considered a substantial issue in the context of food safety, due to their acute and chronic toxic effects on animals and humans. Therefore, new accurate methods for their identification and quantification are constantly developed in order to increase the performance of extraction, improve the accuracy of identification and reduce the limit of detection. At the same time, several industrial practices have shown the ability to reduce the level of mycotoxin contamination in food. In particular, a decrease in the amount of mycotoxins could result from standard processes naturally used for food processing or by procedures strategically introduced during processing, with the specific aim of reducing the amount of mycotoxins. In this review, the current methods adopted for accurate analyses of mycotoxins in cereals (aflatoxins, ochratoxins, trichothecenes, fumonisins) are discussed. In addition, both conventional and innovative strategies adopted to obtain safer finished products from common cereals intended for human consumption will be explored and analysed. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

Recent Developments in Solid-Phase Extraction for Near and Attenuated Total Reflection Infrared Spectroscopic Analysis

A review with more than 100 references on the principles and recent developments in the solid-phase extraction (SPE) prior and for in situ near and attenuated total reflection (ATR) infrared spectroscopic analysis is presented. New materials, chromatographic modalities, experimental setups and configurations are described. Their advantages for fast sample preparation for distinct classes of compounds containing different functional groups in order to enhance selectivity and sensitivity are discussed and compared. This is the first review highlighting both the fundamentals of SPE, near and ATR spectroscopy with a view to real sample applicability and routine analysis. Most of real sample analyses examples are found in environmental research, followed by food- and bioanalysis. In this contribution a comprehensive overview of the most potent SPE-NIR and SPE-ATR approaches is summarized and provided.

Advanced hyphenated chromatographic-mass spectrometry in mycotoxin determination: current status and prospects

Mass spectrometric techniques are essential for advanced research in food safety and environmental monitoring. These fields are important for securing the health of humans and animals, and for ensuring environmental security. Mycotoxins, toxic secondary metabolites of filamentous fungi, are major contaminants of agricultural products, food and feed, biological samples, and the environment as a whole. Mycotoxins can cause cancers, nephritic and hepatic diseases, various hemorrhagic syndromes, and immune and neurological disorders. Mycotoxin-contaminated food and feed can provoke trade conflicts, resulting in massive economic losses. Risk assessment of mycotoxin contamination for humans and animals generally depends on clear identification and reliable quantitation in diversified matrices. Pioneering work on mycotoxin quantitation using mass spectrometry (MS) was performed in the early 1970s. Now, unambiguous confirmation and quantitation of mycotoxins can be readily achieved with a variety hyphenated techniques that combine chromatographic separation with MS, including liquid chromatography (LC) or gas chromatography (GC). With the advent of atmospheric pressure ionization, LC-MS has become a routine technique. Recently, the co-occurrence of multiple mycotoxins in the same sample has drawn an increasing amount of attention. Thus, modern analyses must be able to detect and quantitate multiple mycotoxins in a single run. Improvements in tandem MS techniques have been made to achieve this purpose. This review describes the advanced research that has been done regarding mycotoxin determination using hyphenated chromatographic-MS techniques, but is not a full-circle survey of all the literature published on this topic. The present work provides an overview of the various hyphenated chromatographic-MS-based strategies that have been applied to mycotoxin analysis, with a focus on recent developments. The use of chromatographic-MS to measure levels of mycotoxins, including aflatoxins, ochratoxins, patulin, trichothecenes, zearalenone, and fumonisins, is discussed in detail. Both free and masked mycotoxins are included in this review due to different methods of sample preparation. Techniques are described in terms of sample preparation, internal standards, LC/ultra performance LC (UPLC) optimization, and applications and survey. Several future hyphenated MS techniques are discussed as well, including multidimensional chromatography-MS, capillary electrophoresis-MS, and surface plasmon resonance array-MS.

Evaluation of the effect of mycotoxin binders in animal feed on the analytical performance of standardised methods for the determination of mycotoxins in feed

Recently, the use of substances that can suppress or reduce absorption, promote the excretion of mycotoxins or modify their mode of action in feed, so-called mycotoxin binders, has been officially allowed in the European Union as technological feed additives. The influence of the addition of mycotoxin binders to animal feed on the analytical performance of the official methods for the determination of mycotoxins was studied and the results are presented. Where possible standardised methods for analysis were applied. Samples of 20 commercial mycotoxin binders were collected from various companies. The following mycotoxins were included in the study: aflatoxin B₁, deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, ochratoxin A, fumonisins B₁ and B₂, T-2 and HT-2 toxins. A binder (or binders combined in a group) was mixed with feed material containing the mycotoxin, and the feed material was analysed. For data evaluation, the mean values were compared by Student's t-test (an independent two-sample t-test with unequal sample sizes and equal variance). The repeatability standard deviation of each method was used as an estimate of method variability. No significant differences (p = 0.05) in mycotoxin levels between binder-free material and the material containing different binders were found. Further, the possible effects of binder addition in combination with processing (pelletising) on the amount of aflatoxin B₁ determined in feed were studied. Three commercial mycotoxin binders containing hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicate (HSCAS) as the main component were used in these experiments. Feed samples with and without mycotoxin binders were pelletised with and without steam treatment. After pelletising, materials were analysed for AFB₁. Only the combination pelletising and a mixture of binders added at a total level of 1.2% had a significant effect (41% reduction) on the amount of AFB₁ determined.

Substances for reduction of the contamination of feed by mycotoxins: a review

The global occurrence of mycotoxins is considered to be a major risk factor for human and animal health. Contamination of different agricultural commodities with mycotoxins still occurs despite the most strenuous prevention efforts. As a result, mycotoxin contaminated feed can cause serious disorders and diseases in farm animals. A number of approaches, such as physical and chemical detoxification procedures, have been used to counteract mycotoxins. However, only a few of them have practical application. A recent and promising approach to protect animals against the harmful effects of mycotoxin contaminated feed is the use of substances for reduction of the contamination of feed by mycotoxins. These substances, so-called mycotoxin binders (MB), are added to the diet in order to reduce the absorption of mycotoxins from the gastrointestinal tract and their distribution to blood and target organs, thus preventing or reducing mycotoxicosis in livestock. Recently, the use of such substances as technological feed additives has been officially allowed in the European Union. The efficacy of MB appears to depend on the properties of both the binder and the mycotoxin. Depending on their mode of action, these feed additives may act either by binding mycotoxins to their surface (adsorption), or by degrading or transforming them into less toxic metabolites (biotransformation). Biotransformation can be achieved by mycotoxin-degrading enzymes or by microorganisms producing such enzymes. Various inorganic adsorbents, such as hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicate, zeolites, bentonites, clays, and activated carbons, have been tested and used as MB. An interesting alternative to inorganic adsorbents for the detoxification of mycotoxins is the use of organic binders, such as yeast cell wall components, synthetic polymers (cholestyramine, polyvinylpyrrolidone), humic substances and dietary fibres. This paper gives an overview of the current knowledge and situation in the field of MB. The most important types of MB, mechanism of their action, and their application as a part of general strategy to counteract mycotoxins are described in this review. Recent advances in the use and study of MB, as well as data of their in vitro and in vivo effectiveness are given. Problems, potential, current trends and perspectives associated with the use of MB are discussed as well in the review.

T-2 toxin, a trichothecene mycotoxin: review of toxicity, metabolism, and analytical methods

This review focuses on the toxicity and metabolism of T-2 toxin and analytical methods used for the determination of T-2 toxin. Among the naturally occurring trichothecenes in food and feed, T-2 toxin is a cytotoxic fungal secondary metabolite produced by various species of Fusarium. Following ingestion, T-2 toxin causes acute and chronic toxicity and induces apoptosis in the immune system and fetal tissues. T-2 toxin is usually metabolized and eliminated after ingestion, yielding more than 20 metabolites. Consequently, there is a possibility of human consumption of animal products contaminated with T-2 toxin and its metabolites. Several methods for the determination of T-2 toxin based on traditional chromatographic, immunoassay, or mass spectroscopy techniques are described. This review will contribute to a better understanding of T-2 toxin exposure in animals and humans and T-2 toxin metabolism, toxicity, and analytical methods, which may be useful in risk assessment and control of T-2 toxin exposure.

A rapid method with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for simultaneous determination of five type B trichothecenes in traditional Chinese medicines

A speedy and selective ultra-HPLC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of deoxynivalenol (DON), 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol (3-ADON), 15-ADON, nivalenol and fusarenon X in traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) was developed. The method was based on one-step sample cleanup using reliable homemade cleanup cartridges. A linear gradient mobile-phase system, consisting of water containing 0.2% aqueous ammonia and acetonitrile/methanol (90:10, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min, and an Acquity UPLC HSS T3 column (100 mm x 2.1 mm, 1.8 microm) were employed to obtain the best resolution of the target analytes. [(13)C(15)]-DON was used as the internal standard to accomplish as accurate as possible quantitation. The established method was further validated by determining the linearity (R(2) > or = 0.9990), sensitivity (LOQ, 0.29-0.99 microg/kg), recovery (88.5-119.5%) and precision (RSD < or = 15.8%). It was shown to be a suitable method for simultaneous determination of DON, 3-ADON, 15-ADON, nivalenol and fusarenon X in various TCM matrices. The utility and practical impact of the method was demonstrated using different TCM samples.