Increased aflatoxin contamination in corn by the fungus Aspergillus flavus is associated with frequent periods of drought and heat stress during the reproductive stages of the plants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between aflatoxin contamination and physiological responses of corn plants under drought and heat stress. The study was conducted in Stoneville, MS, USA...

The present investigation is an attempt to evaluate the ameliorative effect of curcumin on aflatoxin-induced toxicity in liver and kidney of mice. Aflatoxin was obtained by growing Aspergillus parasiticus in SMKY liquid medium. 70 male mice were divided into 7 groups (37-40 g body weight) including untreated control, vehicle control (0.2 mL olive oil/animal/day), curcumin control (50 mg/kg body...

Aflatoxin Bi, the most potent hepatic chemical carcinogen known, is activated to the putative product aflatoxin B,-2,3epoxide via a cytochrome P-450-dependent reaction. Mt. Shasta rainbow trout is the most sensitive species known to the hepatocarcinogenic effects of aflatoxin B,. We have previously iso lated and purified a minor form of cytochrome P-450 from this strain of rainbow trout, with a...

ABSTRACT Aflatoxins are toxic fungal metabolites produced by several members of Aspergillus section Flavi. U.S. federal regulations limit the use of aflatoxin-contaminated cottonseed. Cottonseed with aflatoxin content of 20 ng/g or higher may not enter the profitable dairy market. Between 4,472 and 9,949 truckloads of cottonseed from 31 to 35 gins in South Texas were analyzed for aflatoxin cont...

Extended Abstract Aflatoxin B1 is one of the most common mycotoxins, toxic substances produced by fungi, and produced by Aspergillus flavus. It is classified as one of International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Group 1 carcinogens and only few nanograms of aflatoxin B1 may cause liver cancer and stunted growth by permeation through skin. There are conventional diagnosis methods such as ...

Aflatoxins are potent mycotoxins produced by fungi in Aspergillus section flavi. The toxic effect of aflatoxins on humans and other animals is well known (7); thus, many countries regulate the quantity of aflatoxins allowed in foods and feeds (17). Aspergillus flavus Link:Fr. infects many oilseed crops and is frequently, as with cottonseed, the primary cause of aflatoxin contamination (13). Whe...

Two hundred urine samples from apparently healthy subjects were examined for aflatoxin. Aflatoxin was detected in the urine of 9.5% of subjects from the lower and 5% from the upper socioeconomic groups. Liver cancer is also more common in less privileged individuals. Aflatoxin excretion had no relationship with the age or sex of the subjects studied (JPMA 36: 112, 1986).

Probst, C., Bandyopadhyay, R., Price, L. E., and Cotty, P. J. 2011. Identification of atoxigenic Aspergillus flavus isolates to reduce aflatoxin contamination of maize in Kenya. Plant Dis. 95:212-218. Aspergillus flavus has two morphotypes, the S strain and the L strain, that differ in aflatoxin-producing ability and other characteristics. Fungal communities on maize dominated by the S strain o...

Four oilseeds providing cocoa-butter substitutes--shea, pentadecima, illipe, and salseed--when tested as substrates for aflatoxin production by two strains of Aspergillus parasiticus, gave varying levels of aflatoxin. Aflatoxins were found at low levels occurring naturally in moldy shea-nuts, but none of 21 commercial shea-nut samples contained greater than 20 micrograms of aflatoxin B1 per kg.

Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus produced ethylene during early growth. However, the onset of toxin biosynthesis was marked by the absence of ethylene evolution. 2-Chloroethyl phosphonic acid, an ethylene-generating compound, inhibited aflatoxin biosynthesis in vivo. The reciprocal relationship between the production of aflatoxin and ethylene by the organism may indicate the invol...