At a number of slaughters nephropathy and high ochratoxin A contents in kidneys have been observed in fattening pigs from two Swedish farms. In one herd the source of contamination was barley grown on the home farm and stored under such conditions that the growth of fungal species (Penicillium verrucosum var. verrucosum) producing ochratoxin A occurred, with the subsequent formation of the toxi...

Hydroxyochratoxin A was isolated and identified from the urine of rats after injection with ochratoxin A. By incubating ochratoxin A with rat liver microsomes and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, one major (90%) and two minor metabolites, more polar than ochratoxin A, were formed. Thin-layer chromatography revealed that the major metabolite had Rf values identical to those o...

The influence of light of varying wavelength on growth and ochratoxin A biosynthesis of Aspergillus carbonarius, A. niger, A. steynii and on Penicillium nordicum and P. verrucosum was analysed. For comparison the influence of light on various other food relevant fungi, including citrinin producers, was also tested. Generally the Aspergilli seem to be more resistant to light treatment than the P...

The present study was carried out to investigate the aflatoxigenic and ochratoxigenic fungi and their mycotoxins from 194 samples of 5 types of spices (black pepper, turmeric, fennel, green cardamom and mace). Ochratoxin A producing A. niger and aflatoxin producing A. flavus were the most dominant species present in all types of spice. 52% of A. flavus and 44% of A. parasiticus from black peppe...

Aspergillus section Nigri includes some of the most important species for biotechnology and its species are of widespread occurrence. During our surveys of various food products and tropical soil we isolated several aspergilli belonging to section Nigri. In this paper, four new sclerotium and/or ochratoxin A producing species belonging to this section are proposed. In addition, based on a polyp...

Malignant renal carcinoma, manifest in morbid ageing rats, is the striking component of an otherwise silent response after about nine months of exposure to ochratoxin A in the first year of life (daily intake ~100-250 µg/kg body weight). Reasons for the long latency are unclear, as is whether there would be a similar carcinogenic response if toxin exposure started at one year of age. Therefore,...

AIM To determine the presence and concentration of ochratoxin A in wheat and corn from Slavonski Brod surroundings, the area of endemic nephropathy allegedly caused by ochratoxin. METHODS Thin-layer chromatography was used to determine ochratoxin A concentrations in 92 wheat and 51 corn samples from the surroundings of Slavonski Brod, Osijek, Hrvatsko Zagorje, Istria, and Celje (Slovenia). ...

Ochratoxin A is a mycotoxin present in several food products for which levels should be reduced. Chemical, physical, and biological methods have been proposed for the detoxification of mycotoxins, biological methods being the more promising ones. In this report, filamentous fungi isolated from Portuguese grapes were assessed for ochratoxin A degradation capabilities. It was observed that 51 of ...

Ochratoxins A and B were given to 1-day-old Babcock B-300 cockerels to evaluate acute toxic effects. Two trials with ochratoxin A gave 7-day oral median lethal dose estimates of 116 mug (3.3 mg/kg) and 135 mug (3.9 mg/kg) per chick. Chicks given daily oral doses of 100 mug of ochratoxin A died on the second day. Single subcutaneous doses of 400 mug of ochratoxin A were also lethal. The 7-day or...