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This article proposes statistical tools for quantitative evaluation of the risk due to the presence of some particular contaminants in food. We focus on the estimation of the probability of the exposure to exceed the so-called provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI), when both consumption data and contamination data are independently available. A Monte Carlo approximation of the plug-in esti...

A laboratory-scale fermentor designed for solid-substrate fermentation was constructed and tested. Its capacity to produce ochratoxin under varied conditions was determined with wheat as substrate. Ochratoxin yields of 2,000 to 2,500 mug/g of wheat were regularly obtained, and occasionally yields as high as 4,000 mug/g were obtained. The most critical factor in the fermentation was initial subs...

Ochratoxin A (OTA) in wine is linked to contamination by several Aspergillus species. In 2003-2007, grape samples collected in Italy were surveyed for the presence of OTA and OTA-producing fungi. A. niger aggregate was the prevalent species. A. carbonarius, which is considered the main source of OTA in grapes, was mostly found in Southern Italy. The year and the environment had an important inf...

The fate of ochratoxin A in brewing was investigated by adding (3H)ochratoxin A to the raw materials at 1- and 10-mug/g levels during mashing in a conventional microbrewing process. The results indicated that large portions (28 to 39%) of the added toxin were recovered in spent grains, with less recovery in the yeast (8 to 20%) and beer (14 to 18%). About 38 and 12% of the added toxin at levels...

A procedure is presented for screening the quality of feed in respect to ochratoxin A contamination based upon the analysis of ochratoxin A in pig blood. Representative samples from large feed lots may be obtained by using pigs as in vivo sample collectors which enrich the toxin and forms homogeneous samples in the blood. The spectrofluorometric procedure for ochratoxin A analysis (K. Hult and ...

Moistened barley was inoculated with 1.4 x 10(3) and 1.4 x 10(5) spores, respectively, from ochratoxin A-producing strains of Aspergillus ochraceus and Penicillium varidicatum. To estimate fungal tissue in the barley, the amount of glucosamine was followed for 28 days at 10 and 25 degrees C. Ochratoxin A was also followed during the same period and under the same conditions. The data show that ...

The ability of a cyclodextrin-polyurethane polymer to remove ochratoxin A from aqueous solutions was examined by batch rebinding assays. The results from the aqueous binding studies were fit to two parameter models to gain insight into the interaction of ochratoxin A with the nanosponge material. The ochratoxin A sorption data fit well to the heterogeneous Freundlich isotherm model. The polymer...

The first report of the biological production of bromo ochratoxin B by Aspergillus ochraceus Wilh. is presented as well as a study of the influence of potassium bromide, potassium iodide, potassium fluoride, and potassium chloride on the production of ochratoxin A and ochratoxin B. Potassium fluoride and potassium iodide inhibited the growth of the fungus, whereas potassium chloride substantial...

Ochratoxin A is a nephrotoxic and tumorigenic mycotoxin which contaminates a variety of food items, resulting in chronic human exposure. Biotransformation reactions have been implicated in the tumorigenicity of ochratoxin A. The biotransformation of ochratoxin A by cytochromes P450 and other mammalian enzymes was investigated to optimize conditions for bacterial mutagenicity testing. Metabolite...