Co-Occurrence of DON and Emerging Mycotoxins in Worldwide Finished Pig Feed and Their Combined Toxicity in Intestinal Cells

Abstract

Food and feed can be naturally contaminated by several mycotoxins, and concern about the hazard of exposure to mycotoxin mixtures is increasing. In this study, more than 800 metabolites were analyzed in 524 finished pig feed samples collected worldwide. Eighty-eight percent of the samples were co-contaminated with deoxynivalenol (DON) and other regulated/emerging mycotoxins. The Top 60 emerging/regulated mycotoxins co-occurring with DON in pig feed shows that 48%, 13%, 8% and 12% are produced by Fusarium, Aspergillus, Penicillium and Alternaria species, respectively. Then, the individual and combined toxicity of DON and the 10 most prevalent emerging mycotoxins (brevianamide F, cyclo-(L-Pro-L-Tyr), tryptophol, enniatins A1, B, B1, emodin, aurofusarin, beauvericin and apicidin) was measured at three ratios corresponding to pig feed contamination. Toxicity was assessed by measuring the viability of intestinal porcine epithelial cells, IPEC-1, at 48-h. BRV-F, Cyclo and TRPT did not alter cell viability. The other metabolites were ranked in the following order of toxicity: apicidin > enniatin A1 > DON > beauvericin > enniatin B > enniatin B1 > emodin > aurofusarin. In most of the mixtures, combined toxicity was similar to the toxicity of DON alone. In terms of pig health, these results demonstrate that the co-occurrence of emerging mycotoxins that we tested with DON does not exacerbate toxicity.

Low Doses of Mycotoxin Mixtures below EU Regulatory Limits Can Negatively Affect the Performance of Broiler Chickens: A Longitudinal Study

“…Other researchers who carried out multi-mycotoxin surveys also found several mycotoxins co-occurring in feed samples [5,[18][19][20]. In total, 524 finished feed samples collected worldwide were found to be contaminated with 235 metabolites including regulated and emerging mycotoxins [20]. Up to 57 mycotoxins were also found in 1113 finished feeds collected between 2012 and 2015 from 44 countries [18].…”

“…In total, 24 mycotoxins, produced by three fungal genera (Fusarium, Aspergillus and Alternaria), were detected in the analysed samples. Other researchers who carried out multi-mycotoxin surveys also found several mycotoxins co-occurring in feed samples [5,[18][19][20]. In total, 524 finished feed samples collected worldwide were found to be contaminated with 235 metabolites including regulated and emerging mycotoxins [20].…”

“…As reported in several national, regional and worldwide mycotoxin surveys, feed and feedstuffs are frequently contaminated with multiple mycotoxins (both regulated and non-regulated) at higher levels when compared to foods [5,[18][19][20]. This is because complete feeds are made from a blend of materials including cereals and soybean, which are more susceptible to pre-and post-harvest fungal infection.…”

The Presence of Mycotoxins in Feed and Their Influence on Animal Health

“…Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of fungi. They are commonly detected in food, feed [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ], and feed additives [ 5 ]. The presence of mycotoxins in food and feed is influenced by numerous factors, including plant species and variety, region, temperature, moisture content, insect damage, storage conditions, and agricultural practices.…”

“…African farmers lack the knowledge of how, when, and which detoxicants should be used, and the applied agents are often ineffective. Khoshal et al [ 2 ] analyzed 524 samples of pig diets from around the world for the presence of 800 metabolites. Eighty-eight percent of the samples were contaminated with DON.…”