An investigation of fumonisins quantities correlation in wheat/flour used for bakery obtained from North, West and South regional provinces of Iran

Humans have long realized that some species of fungi can be regarded as a risk for human health after eating. But even in recent years, it was considered that the occurrence of mold on food has just been an aesthetic problem and not a risk. Many studies during the first half of the last century found that metabolites of some types of fungi common in food are responsible for diseases and deaths. Currently, it is well established that toxic metabolites of fungi or mycotoxins have been responsible for many epidemics in human and animal populations, especially in recent decades. Toxins produced by fungi are called mycotoxins and Fumonisin is one of the most important ones. So far, 15 different types of Fumonisin have been recognized among the most important ones, which are A1, A2, B1, B2, B3 and B4. Fumonisin B1 is the most prevalent and abundant one. It is absorbed through food and it spreads over the liver and kidney after absorption. Some of them are excreted through urine, whereas most of them are excreted through feces. Dangers resulting from Fumonisin B1 were investigated by World Health Organization, International Immunology Organization (IPCS), Food Security Organization (SCF) and European Commission. Tolerable daily intake (DIDI) for Fumonisin B1, B2 and B3, alone or in combination, were determined 2 mg / kg body weight. No effects of Fumonisin on human metabolism have been reported up to now. Fumonisin B1 causes liver- and kidney-related problems and nephrotoxicity in all animal species. In addition, Fumonisin B1 has been classified as the major carcinogenic factor in humans by International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). In this research, we sampled freshly harvested wheat and flour from early May to early September 2014 in 7 provinces of the country and have tried to determine the contamination level of each province and city with Fumonisin by using direct competitive ELISA and RIDASCREEN kit methods. Considering the amounts of wheat and flour obtained based on divisions of the country, from among 14 cities sampled belonging to 3 regions, including northern, western and southern provinces, Ardebil with 23.34 ppb and Kermanshah with 61.56 ppb had the highest and lowest Fumonisin levels among the wheat samples under study, respectively, while the city of Ijrud with 24.96 ppb and the city of Gonbad with 19.29 ppb had minimum toxin levels in the flour provided for baking bread.

Keywords:

Fumonisins , Wheat , Flour , Territories of Iran