Hassan A. Amra

Natural antioxidants play a principal role in our life, as in body health, nutrition, food products, and recently in food preservation, it is one of the most effective materials. These components have a potential function for biochemical activities for either the plants, animals, or human tissues. Human foods and animal feeds often suffering of mycotoxins contamination. This action gives rise to oxidative stress in the biological systems. Several articles have been focusing on antioxidant roles avoiding food harmful like pathogens, toxigenic fungi, and mycotoxins. Recently, the investigations pointed out that minor components and phenolic antioxidants were capable of occurring a reduction in mycotoxin contamination. These components were obtained mainly from non-traditional oils in most cases. These oils have distinguished by better antioxidant potency. Antioxidants have the functionality to stop deleterious impacts of free radicals' presence that released in tissues and serum in food processing, antioxidant efficiency to suppress mycotoxin-hazard depends on its structure and its chemical activity In this regard, it could achieve preservation properties and shelf-life extension for the final product. In this review, the role of antioxidants will be discussed in two visions, firstly, the biochemical significance and its role in the body fluids and its protective function. Secondly, this review will cover the antioxidant capacity toward food manufacturing, and the preservation potency, particularly in oil application.

In Egypt, there is a paucity of biomarker data on aflatoxin (AF) exposure. The study assessed the level and frequency of breast milk AFM₁ as a biomarker of maternal exposure. Breast milk samples were collected from a selected group of 388 Egyptian lactating mothers of children attending the New El-Qalyub Hospital, Qalyubiyah governorate, Egypt, during May–September 2003. Following aflatoxin extraction, AFM₁ levels were assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. Approximately 36% of mothers tested positive for AFM₁ (median 13.5 pg ml⁻¹, interquartile range (IQR) 10.27–21.43). Non-working status (p = 0.018, odds ratio (OR) = 2.87), obesity (p = 0.004, OR = 3.01), high corn oil consumption (p = 0.002, OR = 2.21), number of children (>1) (p = 0.025, OR = 1.99), and early lactation stage (p = 0.028 OR = 3.57), contributed to the occurrence of AF in breast milk. AFM₁ contamination of breast milk was frequent, albeit at moderate levels. Growth and development of the infant is rapid and thus it is possible that AF exposure through breast milk has a significant health effect.

Numerous studies have established that aflatoxin is a potent developmental toxin in animals. Previous research has demonstrated that a phyllosilicate clay, hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicate (HSCAS or Novasil PIE TM), tightly binds and immobilizes aflatoxins in the gastrointestinal tract of animals and markedly reduces the bioavailability and toxicity of aflatoxin. Our objective in this study was to utilize the pregnant rat as an in vivo model to compare the potential of HSCAS and bentonite to prevent the developmental toxicity of aflatoxin. Aluminosilicates (HSCAS) and bentonite were added to the diet at a level of 0.5% (w/w) and fed to the pregnant rat throughout pregnancy (i.e. days 0–20). Test animals were fed an aflatoxin-contaminated diet (2.5 mg kg⁻¹ diet) with or without sorbents during gestation days 6–15. Evaluations of toxicity were performed on day 20. These included maternal (mortality, body weights, feed intake and litter weights), developmental (embryonic resorptions and fetal body weights) and biochemical (ALT, AST and AP) evaluations. Sorbents alone were not toxic and aflatoxin alone resulted in significant maternal and developmental toxicity. Animals treated with phyllosilicate (plus aflatoxin) were comparable to controls following evaluations for resorptions, live fetuses and fetal body weights, as well as biochemical parameters. While bentonite plus aflatoxin resulted in significant reduction in fetal body weight, none of the fetuses from HSCAS or bentonite plus aflatoxin-treated groups had any gross, internal soft tissue or major skeletal malformations. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Bentonite and hydrated sodium calcium aluminsilicate (HSCAS) were added at a level of 0.5 % (w/w) to the diets containing 2.5 mg aflatoxins (AF) per kg diet and fed to male mature rats for 15 successive days. Aflatoxin alone significantly decreased feed intake and altered serum biochemical parameters of liver and kidney functions. Aflatoxin caused chromosomal aberrations in bone marrow cells. Bentonite or HSCAS did not alter any of the parameters measured. The addition of bentonite or HSCAS to the AF‐contaminated diet diminished most of the deleterious effects of the aflatoxin. Pathological examinations of liver and kidney proved that both bentonite and HSCAS were hepatonephroprotective agents against aflatoxicosis. The cytogenetic findings demonstrated that the addition of bentonite or HSCAS to AF‐contaminated diet suppressed chromosomal aberrations. These findings indicated that bentonite and HSCAS could diminished many of the adverse effect of dietary AF in rats. Copyright © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effect of biscuit processing on the destruction of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁ with and/or without some commonly leavening agents used namely sodium bicarbonate, ammonium bicarbonate and sodium bisulfite and sodium chloride. It was found that mixing step reduced the concentration of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁ by 80.7% and 82.7%, while the effect of baking step being 28.9% and 21.5%. The effect of mixing was found to be more pronounced than that baking step. The highest destruction effect on aflatoxin B1 was observed by adding a mixture composed of sodium and ammonium bicarbonate and sodium bisulfite followed by sodium chloride, sodium bisulfite, ammonium bicarbonate and/or sodium bicarbonate alone, where the reduction values of toxin after mixing were 93.4,91.9,91.7, 88.8 and 86.6% respectively, while the baking effect ranged 17.2 to 34.5% in the presence of different leaving agents added. Concerning aflatoxin G1; the highest destructive effect of toxin was adsorbed by adding a mixture of sodium and ammonium bicarbonate and sodium bisulfite followed by sodium bisulfite, sodium chloride, ammonium bicarbonate and/or sodium bicarbonate alone since the destruction values of such toxin after mixing were 96.2%, 92.8%, 92.6%, 89.0% and 87.7% respectively, while the baking effect ranged 20.9 to 34.5% in all leavening agents added.

The effect of processing steps as well preservatives used in French bread making namely propionic acid and/or potassium sorbate (0.2%) on the destruction of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁ was studied. Mixing and baking processes showed marked destruction of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁; being 71.2% and 52.5% for aflatoxin B₁ after mixing and baking steps, while reaching 73.9% and 54.5% for aflatoxin G₁. Fermentation step caused additional 15.3% and 15.0% destruction of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁. On the other hand, aflatoxin B₁ destruction was 79.2% and 50.7% when propionic acid was used and 75.3 and 56.7% in the presence of potassium sorbate and after mixing and baking steps respectively. Concerning aflatoxins G₁ it was found that mixing and baking steps showed destruction of 81.9% and 53.4% in the presence of propionic acid and 75.1 and 49.4% in the presence of potassium sorbate in this respective order. Generally, it can be concluded that using propionic acid as preservative appeared to be more effective on the destruction of aflatoxins B₁ and G₁ than potassium sorbate in French bread making.