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Mycotoxins as Food Contaminants: Detection, Prevalence and Safety Assessment
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Mycotoxins as Food Contaminants: Detection, Prevalence and Safety Assessment

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Toxicology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 1507

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ana Vulić

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory for Analytical Chemistry, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Savska Cesta 143, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: food quality; food safety; traditional meat products; analytical chemistry; mycotoxins
Dr. Nina Kudumija

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Croatian Veterinary Institute, Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: food quality; food safety; mycotoxins; growth promotors; analytical chemistry
Dr. Tina Lešić

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Croatian Veterinary Institute, Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: food quality; food safety; mycotoxins; mycoflora; analytical chemistry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Natural toxins in food are a major food safety issue and an important natural toxin group is mycotoxins, secondary metabolites produced by moulds. They are mainly found in cereals, spices, coffee, and fruit, as well as in products of animal origin. The prevalence of mycotoxins in food and feed is influenced by various factors, considering environmental factors, biological factors, and food storage. The consumption of food contaminated with mycotoxins can have acute and long-term chronic effects and poses a significant health risk to humans. With modern analytical techniques such as LC-MS/MS, it is possible to detect very low concentrations of these substances, which is beneficial for health protection.

We invite submissions of high-quality original research articles, reviews, and short communications that have not been previously published for this Special Issue. This Special Issue will focus on methodologies for the detection of mycotoxins and mycotoxigenic moulds, their prevalence in various raw materials and food products, and the factors influencing these aspects. Additionally, it will focus on dietary exposure assessments and risk evaluation processes that are necessary to determine whether the prevalence of mycotoxins poses a health risk for consumers.

Dr. Ana Vulić
Dr. Nina Kudumija
Dr. Tina Lešić
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • mycotoxins
  • food safety
  • analytical methods
  • occurrence
  • risk assesment
  • mycotoxigenic fungi

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 241 KiB  
Article
Mycotoxin Residues in Chicken Breast Muscle and Liver
by Tina Lešić, Jelka Pleadin, Nina Kudumija, Dora Tomašković and Ana Vulić
Foods 2025, 14(12), 2017; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14122017 (registering DOI) - 7 Jun 2025
Abstract
The global increase in chicken meat production and consumption has heightened concerns regarding the safety of chicken meat and its derived products. This study aimed to investigate the presence of Penicillium and Aspergillus mycotoxins in 50 samples of chicken breast muscle and liver [...] Read more.
The global increase in chicken meat production and consumption has heightened concerns regarding the safety of chicken meat and its derived products. This study aimed to investigate the presence of Penicillium and Aspergillus mycotoxins in 50 samples of chicken breast muscle and liver collected from the Croatian market. Eight mycotoxins commonly produced by Aspergillus and Penicillium species were analyzed: aflatoxins B1 (AFB1), G1 (AFG1), B2 (AFB2), and G2 (AFG2); sterigmatocystin (STC); ochratoxin A (OTA); cyclopiazonic acid (CPA); and citrinin (CIT). Mycotoxin concentrations were determined using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) following sample cleanup with immunoaffinity columns while a QuEChERS-based method was applied for CPA. Mycotoxin occurrence was higher in liver samples, indicating the liver as primary site of mycotoxin accumulation compared to muscle tissue, where only CPA was detected. CPA was present in 20% of all samples, with the highest concentration (6.50 µg/kg) found in breast muscle, detected for the first time in fresh meat. AFB1 and OTA were each detected in 10% of samples, and CIT was found in 4%—all exclusively in liver tissue. Notably, 4 out of the 17 contaminated samples contained more than one mycotoxin. Although the detected concentrations can be considered too low to pose an immediate health risk, the contamination rate suggests further research into these mycotoxins in chicken and other poultry species is needed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxins as Food Contaminants: Detection, Prevalence and Safety Assessment)
13 pages, 1024 KiB  
Article
Assessing Ochratoxin A Contamination in Pre-Packaged Grated Cheese: Implications for Food Safety
by Valentina Meucci, Alessio Lenzi, Andrea Armani, Francesca Pedonese, Ludovica Ghimenti and Lucia De Marchi
Foods 2025, 14(9), 1504; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14091504 - 25 Apr 2025
Viewed by 551
Abstract
Cheese is a globally consumed dairy product, with Europe leading the world in its consumption. Italy, as the third-largest cheese producer within the European Union, plays a crucial role in the sector, particularly through its production of Protected Designation of Origin (P.D.O.) cheeses, [...] Read more.
Cheese is a globally consumed dairy product, with Europe leading the world in its consumption. Italy, as the third-largest cheese producer within the European Union, plays a crucial role in the sector, particularly through its production of Protected Designation of Origin (P.D.O.) cheeses, including Grana Padano and Parmigiano Reggiano. These hard cheeses are widely utilized in pre-packaged grated cheese products, owing to their broad appeal and recognized quality. While mold is a common and often necessary component in cheese production for the development of flavor and texture, fungal growth can also detrimentally affect the quality of cheese, potentially causing economic losses and posing food safety risks. Some molds are capable of producing mycotoxins, such as ochratoxin A (OTA), a toxic compound that has been identified in cheese. This study aims to quantitatively assess the prevalence of OTA contamination in various pre-packaged grated cheese products using the high-performance liquid chromatography method while also exploring the potential implications for food safety. The results revealed a high incidence of OTA, with 97.6% of the samples tested positive for contamination, ranging from below the limit of detection (<LOD) to 19.15 ng g−1. Among the cheeses tested, the Parmigiano Reggiano brand exhibited the significantly highest average level of OTA contamination (5.06 ± 0.66 ng g−1), followed by pecorino (2.25 ± 0.31 ng g−1), mixed (2.15 ± 0.18 ng g−1), and the Grana Padano cheeses (1.53 ± 0.21 ng g−1). Given the widespread consumption of pre-packaged grated cheese products, these findings underscore the importance of continuous monitoring and risk assessment of cheese products, particularly pre-packaged grated varieties, due to the potential health risks associated with OTA exposure. Further investigations are essential to identify the factors contributing to OTA contamination in cheese and to support the development of regulatory standards to ensure consumer safety. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxins as Food Contaminants: Detection, Prevalence and Safety Assessment)
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15 pages, 1438 KiB  
Article
Effect of Baking Conditions on Mycotoxin Levels in Flatbreads Prepared from Artificially Contaminated Doughs
by Kali Kotsiou, Michael A. Terzidis and Maria Papageorgiou
Foods 2025, 14(6), 910; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14060910 - 7 Mar 2025
Viewed by 670
Abstract
This study investigated the impact of baking conditions on mycotoxin content in Greek pita bread, a single-layered flatbread baked at high temperatures for short time intervals. Dough samples were artificially contaminated with a multi-mycotoxin mixture, including aflatoxins (AFs) G2, G1, B2, and B1; [...] Read more.
This study investigated the impact of baking conditions on mycotoxin content in Greek pita bread, a single-layered flatbread baked at high temperatures for short time intervals. Dough samples were artificially contaminated with a multi-mycotoxin mixture, including aflatoxins (AFs) G2, G1, B2, and B1; ochratoxin A (OTA); deoxynivalenol (DON); and zearalenone (ZEA). Flatbreads were baked under three temperature–time combinations (220, 270, and 320 °C for 4, 2, and 1 min, respectively), with additional evaluation of a parbaking process (baking halted at 75% of the total time for each respective temperature, bread was stored at −18 °C, then bread was baked for 3 min at 180 °C). A QuEChERS-LC-MS/MS method was implemented for the determination of mycotoxins. The results demonstrated varying degrees of thermal degradation, with AFs B1 and G1 showing the highest decrease (39% on average), followed by AFG2, AFB2, ZEA, and DON (16–25%), while OTA remained relatively thermostable. Multivariate analyses classified flatbreads into two groups: higher baking temperatures and parbaking favored reductions in AFG1, AFG2, ZEA, OTA, and AFB2 levels while longer baking times at lower temperatures favored DON and AFB1 reduction. These findings provide insights for optimizing baking conditions to improve food safety in industrial and home-baking applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxins as Food Contaminants: Detection, Prevalence and Safety Assessment)
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