Climate change has been reported as a driver for emerging food and feed safety issues worldwide and its expected impact on the presence of mycotoxins in food and feed is of great concern. Aflatoxins have the highest acute and chronic toxicity of all mycotoxins; hence, the maximal concentration in agricultural food and feed products and their commodities is regulated worldwide. The possible change in patterns of aflatoxin occurrence in crops due to climate change is a matter of concern that may require anticipatory actions. The aim of this study was to predict aflatoxin contamination in maize and wheat crops, within the next 100 years, under a +2 °C and +5 °C climate change scenario, applying a modelling approach. Europe was virtually covered by a net, 50 × 50 km grids, identifying 2254 meshes with a central point each. Climate data were generated for each point, linked to predictive models and predictions were run consequently. Aflatoxin B 1 is predicted to become a food safety issue in maize in Europe, especially in the +2 °C scenario, the most probable scenario of climate change expected for the next years. These results represent a supporting tool to reinforce aflatoxin management and to prevent human and animal exposure.Climate change has been reported as a driver for emerging food and feed safety issues worldwide [1][2][3][4] .The expected impact of climate change on the presence of mycotoxins in food and feed is of great concern. These fungal metabolites are important causes of chronic toxicity from exposure via food 5,6 ; in particular, aflatoxins, which have the highest acute and chronic toxicity of all mycotoxins 7 . Hence, the maximal concentration of aflatoxins in agricultural food and feed products and their commodities is regulated worldwide, with specific restrictions in Europe (Commission Regulation EU/574/2011, 2006/1881/EC and amendments). The possible change in patterns of aflatoxin occurrence in food and feed crops due to climate change is a matter of concern that may require anticipatory actions.Crop growth and its interaction with beneficiary and pathogenic and/or toxigenic microorganisms vary from year to year, mainly depending on local weather, making the agricultural sector particularly exposed to climate change 8 . The topic is of great economic and societal interest both for the quantitative and qualitative effects on crop yield and the impact on the occurrence of mycotoxins 9 .Around nine million hectares of maize and 26 million hectares of common wheat are yearly grown in Europe, and cereals in general contribute to approximately 30% of the human diet of industrialised countries (data from FAOStat http://faostat3.fao.org/home/E), as well as to roughly 50% of the animal feed in Europe (European Commission, Agricultural and Rural Development, Short term outlook, 2015). Therefore, any problem related to food and feed crops is of great economic and health concern.The most toxic mycotoxins are aflatoxins, which can occur in host crops infected by some species of Aspergillus. Aflatoxins are...

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

A study was carried out to investigate fungi present on grapes grown in Italy. Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. isolates were identified and studied in vitro, and their ability to produce ochratoxin A (OA) was investigated. The survey involved nine vineyards, three located in northern Italy and six located in southern Italy. In 1999 and 2000, bunches of grapes at different growth stages were collected from all nine vineyards, and berry samples were placed in moist chambers and incubated. The resultant fungal colonies were then transferred to petri dishes containing Czapek yeast agar and incubated at 25 degrees C for 7 days; the fungal isolates were identified and then cultivated in liquid Czapek yeast medium and evaluated for their ability to produce OA. During the survey, 508 isolates were collected, with 477 belonging to Aspergillus spp. and 31 belonging to Penicillium spp. Among the aspergilli, species of the Fumigati, Circumdati, and Nigri sections were identified, with species of the Nigri section (464 isolates) largely predominating; for species of the Nigri section, 108 isolates were uniseriate, 270 were biseriate, and 86 were identified as Aspergillus carbonarius. Black aspergilli isolated over the 2 years of the study showed a very similar pattern. On average, the biseriates represented about 60% of the isolates collected in both years and were followed by uniseriates (21%) and A. carbonarius (19%). The most toxigenic strains proved to be those of A. carbonarius; about 60% of these isolates were OA producers and produced the highest levels of OA. A. carbonarius was more frequent in the south, but in both areas the percentages of OA-producing isolates remained the same.