Aflatoxin Contamination in Cotton Seed Cake Used as Dietary Supplement in Cattle in Dairy Farms of Sindh

The cotton seedcake is most widely used food supplement for dairy cattle in Sindh. Cotton seedcakes (CSCs) when not properly maintained under optimal conditions, lead to mold colonization, which causes aflatoxicosis in dairy farm animals. The aflatoxin (AFB1) is transmitted through milk (AFM1) and possibly pose great risk to human health. In the current study, prevalence and quantification of Aflatoxin in CSC has been carried out using the ELISA technique. Total 315 CSC samples were collected from dairy farms located in three zones of Sindh, i.e., the southern zone (districts Karachi, Thatta, Hyderabad), central zone (districts Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Shaheed Benazir Abad) and northern zone (districts Naushahro Feroze, Sukkur, and Larkana). The findings suggest that AFB1 levels were significantly (p<0.05) higher in the samples obtained from southern zone as compared to central and northern zone. Although, except Karachi (AFB1 level 7.52 µg/kg), all other districts of all three zones were statistically non-significant, therefore, it is concluded that Karachi has high contamination of Aflatoxin contamination in CSC which may possibly cause the health risks in the population of area.