Method validation for quantitative analyzing aflatoxin productivity in Aspergillus sp. isolated from soybean paste

Non-aflatoxigenic Aspergillus oryzae and aflatoxigenic A. flavus cannot be clearly identified by partial sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 18S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (18S rRNA) regions. This study aimed to compare the accuracy among three aflatoxin detection methods using ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit and to select the non-aflatoxigenic Aspergillus sp. isolated from soybean paste. All analytical methods were suitable according to the international standards of Codex Alimentarius FAO-WHO (CODEX) or the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). UPLC exhibited the best of limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ). Based on UPLC, HPLC, and the ELISA kit assay, the P5 and P7 strains isolated from soybean paste had 1,663.49, 1,468.12, and ⟩20 μg/kg and 1,470.08, 1,056.73, and ⟩20 μg/kg, respectively, detected and re-identified as A. flavus. In contrast, the P3 and P4 strains (A. oryzae), which were detected below the MFDS standards in all assays, were confirmed as non-aflatoxigenic fungi. Among the methods evaluated for quantitative analysis of aflatoxin, UPLC and HPLC are superior in terms of accuracy, and the ELISA kit rapidly detects low concentrations of aflatoxin. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that any Aspergillus sp. isolated for use as a fermentation starter should be analyzed for potential aflatoxin production using UPLC and HPLC for accurate quantitative analysis or ELISA for the rapid detection of low-level concentrations of aflatoxin.