Published in Scientific Bulletin. Series F. Biotechnologies, Vol. XVII
Written by Shinawar Waseem ALI, Muhammad Saleem HAIDER, Muhammad RIAZ, Muhammad Hassan MUSHTAQ
Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by certain species of fungi on grains in the field or after harvest and during transport and storage, etc. These are becoming ubiquitous pollutants in agricultural products, and represent a potential threat to human as well as animal health. Laws enacted to control the presence of mycotoxins in food and feed are increasing. Although some physical and chemical methods of detoxification are reported, bioremediation is going to be method of choice due to its environment friendly nature and low cost involved. Bioremediation is the elimination or biotransformation of mycotoxins into non-toxic metabolites by microbes such as bacteria or fungi. The genes involved in the degradation of mycotoxins by microbial activity have been reported to be cloned, and microbial trials for the treatment of contamination of agricultural products are in progress. This paper briefly describes the toxicity of mycotoxins i.e. deoxynivalenol (DON) and aflatoxin. In addition, the escalation of microbes such as acteria and fungi,capable of detoxifying these toxins in mixed cultures or pure culture is described. However, the results obtained so far can only be used as a first step in the development of technologies and business practices, as the experiments were performed on a laboratory scale only so far.Finally,future challenges and innovative strategies for decontamination of mycotoxins by microorganisms are elaborated.
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Bioremediation
