dc.description.abstract | Fermented food samples (n = 191) including maize gruel (ogi), sorghum gruel (ogi-baba),
melon seed (ogiri), locust bean (iru) and African oil bean seed (ugba) from Southwest Nigeria
were quantified for 23 mycotoxins, including aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), fumonisin B1 (FB1), and
sterigmatocystin (STE) using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The practices,
perceived understanding and health risks related to fungal and mycotoxin contamination amongst
fermented food sellers was also established. Data obtained revealed that 82% of the samples had
mycotoxins occurring singly or in combination. FB1 was present in 83% of ogi-baba samples, whereas
20% of ugba samples contained AFB1 (range: 3 to 36 µg/kg) and STE was present in 29% of the ogi
samples. In terms of multi-mycotoxin contamination, FB1 + FB2 + FB3 + STE + AFB1 + alternariol
+ HT-2 co-occurred within one sample. The awareness study revealed that 98% of respondents were
unaware of mycotoxin contamination, and their education level slightly correlated with their level
of awareness (p < 0.01, r = 0.308). The extent to which the analyzed mycotoxins contaminated these
food commodities, coupled with the poor perception of the population under study on fungi and
mycotoxins, justifies the need to enact fungal and mycotoxin mitigation strategies along the food chain. | en_US |