The peanut supply chain in Malaysia is dominated by three main stakeholders (importers, manufacturers, retailers). The present study aimed to determine the levels and critical points of aflatoxin and fungal contamination in peanuts along the supply chain. Specifically, two types of raw peanuts and six types of peanut-based products were collected (N = 178). Samples were analysed for aflatoxins by using high-performance liquid chromatography. Results revealed that the aflatoxin contamination was significantly higher (P ≤ 0.05) in raw peanuts and peanut-based products from the retailers. However, there was no significant difference (P ≥ 0.05) in fungal contamination for both types of peanuts except for the total fungal count in raw peanuts from the retailers. Furthermore, raw peanut kernels from the retailers were the most contaminated ones ranged from
The aim of this study was to identify the foodborne pathogens mainly, Aspergillus sp. colonizing rice grains using cultural and microscopic methods. Four differential media (Czapek Dox Agar (CZA), Czapek Yeast Agar (CYA), Malt Extract Agar (MEA) and Czapek yeast 20% sucrose agar (CYA20S)) were used for differentiation of five Aspergillus sp., colonizing rice grains comparing with standard cultures. We studied macroscopic (colony color and diameter, conidia color, exudates, sclerotia and colony texture) and microscopic (conidiophore color, length and breadth, conidia size, shape and surface texture, vesicle diameter and phialides length and breadth) characteristics for identification of 110 isolates of Aspergillus sp. isolated from 65 rice grain samples collected from various countries in South Asia (Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand). According to morphological characters, all these isolates were belonging to Aspergillus flavus (45), A. fumigatus (8), A. ochraceus (7), A. niger (42) and A. tamarii (8). This is the first report on identification of large number of Aspergillus strains isolated from rice grains in South Asia.
Malaysian population widely consumes the cereal-based foods, oilseeds, nuts, and spices in their daily diet. Mycotoxigenic fungi are well known to invade food products under storage conditions and produce mycotoxins that have threat to human and animal health. Therefore, determining toxigenic fungi and aflatoxin B(1) (AFB1) in foods used for human consumption is of prime importance to develop suitable management strategies and to minimize risk. Ninety-five food products marketed in Penang, Malaysia were randomly collected from different supermarkets and were analyzed for presence of Aspergillus spp. by agar plate assay and AFB1 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A. flavus was the dominant fungi in all foods followed by A. niger. Fifty-five A. flavus strains were tested for their ability to produce aflatoxins on rice grain substrate. Thirty-six (65.4%) strains out of 55 produced AFB1 ranging from 1700 to 4400 μg/kg and 17 strains (31%) produced AFB2 ranging from 620 to 1670 μg/kg. Natural occurrence of AFB1 could be detected in 72.6% food products ranging from 0.54 to 15.33 μg/kg with a mean of 1.95 μg/kg. Maximum AFB1 levels were detected in peanut products ranging from 1.47 to 15.33 μg/kg. AFB1 levels detected in all food products were below the Malaysian permissible limits (<35 μg/kg). Aspergillus spp. and AFB1 was not detected in any cookies tested. Although this survey was not comprehensive, it provides valuable information on aflatoxin levels in foods marketed in Malaysia.
The present work aimed to determine the prevalence of aflatoxigenic Aspergillus section Flavi on different types of dairy goat's feed samples obtained from four dairy goat's farms around the central region of Peninsular Malaysia, and to examine the effects of climatic conditions (temperature, relative humidity) of the dairy goat's farms, and their feeding and storage practices on the fungal prevalence of different types of dairy goat's feed. A total of 60 goat's feed samples were obtained, and their proximate composition and water activity were determined, following which they were cultivated on DRBC and AFPA for total fungal load and Aspergillus section Flavi load determination, respectively. Fungal isolates were identified morphologically, and toxigenicity potentials of Aspergillus section Flavi isolates were determined using CCA. The temperature and relative humidity data of all farms were obtained from the Malaysian Meteorological Department. The total fungal loads (on DRBC) of the goat's feed samples were log 0.767 to 7.071 CFU/g which included the common feed contaminants such as Aspergillus, Fusarium, and Penicillium. The Aspergillus section Flavi loads (on AFPA) were log 0.667 to 3.206 CFU/g. Farm A yielded the highest number of Aspergillus section Flavi isolates as well as the highest number of aflatoxigenic isolates. It was found that climatic conditions and different practices between farms positively influenced the fungal prevalence on goat's feed samples based on the Pearson correlation analysis. The prevalence of mycotoxigenic isolates on goat's feed warrants for urgent intervention to ensure that goats are being fed with nutritionally adequate and safe feed. The presence of aflatoxigenic Aspergillus section Flavi isolates indicates the risk of aflatoxin B1 contamination on the goat's feed, aflatoxicosis development in the goats, and aflatoxin M1 bio-transformation in the goat's milk. This is a potential threat to the flourishing goat's milk industry in Malaysia.
Peanuts are widely consumed as the main ingredient in many local dishes in Malaysia. However, the tropical climate in Malaysia (high temperature and humidity) favours the growth of fungi from Aspergillus section Flavi, especially during storage. Most of the species from this section, such as A. flavus, A. parasiticus and A. nomius, are natural producers of aflatoxins. Precise identification of local isolates and information regarding their ability to produce aflatoxins are very important to evaluate the safety of food marketed in Malaysia. Therefore, this study aimed to identify and characterize the aflatoxigenic and non-aflatoxigenic strains of Aspergillus section Flavi in peanuts and peanut-based products. A polyphasic approach, consisting of morphological and chemical characterizations was applied to 128 isolates originating from raw peanuts and peanut-based products. On the basis of morphological characters, 127 positively identified as Aspergillus flavus, and the other as A. nomius. Chemical characterization revealed six chemotype profiles which indicates diversity of toxigenic potential. About 58.6%, 68.5%, and 100% of the isolates are positive for aflatoxins, cyclopiazonic acid and aspergillic acid productions respectively. The majority of the isolates originating from raw peanut samples (64.8%) were aflatoxigenic, while those from peanut-based products were less toxigenic (39.1%). The precise identification of these species may help in developing control strategies for aflatoxigenic fungi and aflatoxin contamination in peanuts, especially during storage. These findings also highlight the possibility of the co-occurrence of other toxins, which could increase the potential toxic effects of peanuts.
Thirty milled rice samples were collected from retailers in 4 provinces of Malaysia. These samples were evaluated for Aspergillus spp. infection by direct plating on malt extract salt agar (MESA). All Aspergillus holomorphs were isolated and identified using nucleotide sequences of ITS 1 and ITS 2 of rDNA. Five anamorphs (Aspergillus flavus, A. oryzae, A. tamarii, A. fumigatus and A. niger) and 5 teleomorphs (Eurotium rubrum, E. amstelodami, E. chevalieri, E. cristatum and E. tonophilum) were identified. The PCR-sequencing based technique for sequences of ITS 1 and ITS 2 is a fast technique for identification of Aspergillus and Eurotium species, although it doesn't work flawlessly for differentiation of Eurotium species. All Aspergillus and Eurotium isolates were screened for their ability to produce aflatoxin and ochratoxin A (OTA) by HPLC and TLC techniques. Only A. flavus isolate UPM 89 was able to produce aflatoxins B1 and B2.
To review invasive aspergillosis (IA) in developing countries, we included those countries, which are mentioned in the document of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), called the Emerging and Developing Economies List, 2009. A PubMed/Medline literature search was performed for studies concerning IA reported during 1970 through March 2010 from these countries. IA is an important cause of morbidity and mortality of hospitalized patients of developing countries, though the exact frequency of the disease is not known due to inadequate reporting and facilities to diagnose. Only a handful of centers from India, China, Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, South Africa, Turkey, Hungary, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Argentina had reported case series of IA. As sub-optimum hospital care practice, hospital renovation work in the vicinity of immunocompromised patients, overuse or misuse of steroids and broad-spectrum antibiotics, use of contaminated infusion sets/fluid, and increase in intravenous drug abusers have been reported from those countries, it is expected to find a high rate of IA among patients with high risk, though hard data is missing in most situations. Besides classical risk factors for IA, liver failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, and tuberculosis are the newly recognized underlying diseases associated with IA. In Asia, Africa and Middle East sino-orbital or cerebral aspergillosis, and Aspergillus endophthalmitis are emerging diseases and Aspergillus flavus is the predominant species isolated from these infections. The high frequency of A. flavus isolation from these patients may be due to higher prevalence of the fungus in the environment. Cerebral aspergillosis cases are largely due to an extension of the lesion from invasive Aspergillus sinusitis. The majority of the centers rely on conventional techniques including direct microscopy, histopathology, and culture to diagnose IA. Galactomannan, β-D glucan test, and DNA detection in IA are available only in a few centers. Mortality of the patients with IA is very high due to delays in diagnosis and therapy. Antifungal use is largely restricted to amphotericin B deoxycholate and itraconazole, though other anti-Aspergillus antifungal agents are available in those countries. Clinicians are aware of good outcome after use of voriconazole/liposomal amphotericin B/caspofungin, but they are forced to use amphotericin B deoxycholate or itraconazole in public-sector hospitals due to economic reasons.
BACKGROUND: The impact of Aspergillus on lung disease in young children with cystic fibrosis is uncertain.
AIMS: To determine if positive respiratory cultures of Aspergillus species are associated with: (1) increased structural lung injury at age 5 years; (2) accelerated lung function decline between ages 5 years and 14 years and (3) to identify explanatory variables.
METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis of association between Aspergillus positive bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cultures and chest high-resolution CT (HRCT) scan findings at age 5 years in subjects from the Australasian Cystic Fibrosis Bronchoalveolar Lavage (ACFBAL) study was performed. A non-linear mixed-effects disease progression model was developed using FEV1% predicted measurements at age 5 years from the ACFBAL study and at ages 6-14 years for these subjects from the Australian Cystic Fibrosis Data Registry.
RESULTS: Positive Aspergillus BAL cultures at age 5 years were significantly associated with increased HRCT scores for air trapping (OR 5.53, 95% CI 2.35 to 10.82). However, positive Aspergillus cultures were not associated with either FEV1% predicted at age 5 years or FEV1% predicted by age following adjustment for body mass index z-score and hospitalisation secondary to pulmonary exacerbations. Lung function demonstrated a non-linear decline in this population.
CONCLUSION: In children with cystic fibrosis, positive Aspergillus BAL cultures at age 5 years were associated contemporaneously with air trapping but not bronchiectasis. However, no association was observed between positive Aspergillus BAL cultures on FEV1% predicted at age 5 years or with lung function decline between ages 5 years and 14 years.