Mycotoxins in cereals of 2013 harvest in Croatia

Žitarice na polju i tijekom skladištenja izložene su različitim vrstama plijesni, što za posljedicu može imati kontaminaciju mikotoksinima. Najčešća je kontaminacija hrane i krmiva aflatoksinima, deoksinivalenolom, fumonizinima, ohratoksinom A i zearalenonom u različitim koncentracijama ovisno o okolišnim uvjetima na polju i u skladištu. Cilj ovog rada bio je odrediti pojavnost mikotoksina u hrvatskim žitaricama žetve 2013. U tu svrhu prikupljena su 24 reprezentativna uzorka žitarica (pšenice, ječma i zobi) namijenjena ljudskoj prehrani. Za određivanje mikotoksina korištena je multimikotoksinska metoda tekućinske kromatografije – tandemske masene spektrometrije (LC-MS/MS). Rezultati su utvrdili prisutnost Fusarium mikotoksina, a u manjim koncentracijama detektirani su i mikotoksini rodova Alternaria, Penicillium, Aspergillus, ergot alkaloidi te mikotoksini drugih rodova plijesni. Relativno niske prosječne razine kontaminacije dobivene u ovom radu bi se mogle objasniti toplim i suhim vremenom u periodu cvatnje i žetve žitarica. Cereals are naturally exposed to different species of fungi both in the field and during storage, which may result in mycotoxin contamination of cereal grains. Most commonly, food and feeds are contaminated with aflatoxins, deoksynivalenol, fumonisins, ochratoxin A, and zearalenone in a wide range of concentrations, dependent on environmental and storage conditions. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of mycotoxins in cereals from 2013 harvest in Croatia. Twenty-four representative samples of cereals (wheat, barley and oats) for human consumption were collected for this purpose. The mycotoxins were determined using a multimycotoxin method by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The results indicated the presence of Fusarium mycotoxins although lower concentrations of Alternaria, Penicillium, Aspergillus, ergot alkaloids and other fungal metabolites were detected as well. Relatively low average contamination levels observed in this study could be associated with a warm and dry weather during flowering and harvest periods.