Some major mycotoxin and their mycotoxicoses in nuts and dried fruits.

Abstract

Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by some species of mould genera such as Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium, which invade crops in the field and may grow on foods during storage under favorable conditions of temperature and humidity. They are regularly implicated in toxic syndromes in animals and humans as resulting from the intake of mycotoxins are known as mycotoxicoses, aflatoxins, ochratoxins, trichothecenes, zearalenone, fumonisins, tremorgenic toxins, and ergot alkaloids are the mycotoxins of greatest agro-economic importance. Nuts and dried fruits such as apricot, dates, walnuts, peanut, pistachios, figs, raisins, and etc are consumed as snacks as well as part of the ingredients of certain dishes in our daily diet, which are contaminated by moulds and their maycotoxins. This review attempts to describe some major moulds and their mycotoxins, which can contaminate the nuts and dried fruits. Also the diseases (mycotoxicoses) caused by these mycotoxins due to utilization of contaminated nuts and dried fruit has been well.