Fumonisina em milho (Zea mays l.) e seus derivados

Abstract

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by species of fungi growing on food. Some of these substances can cause serious harm to human health and animal due to its mutagenic and carcinogenic capacity, and can also cause great economic losses. The most commonly found mycotoxins are aflatoxins, zearalenone, ochratoxins, trichothecenes and fumonisins, which can contaminate products such as corn, coffee, wheat, peanuts, soybeans, cottonseed and silage. Corn, one of the main crops used for human and animal consumption, has high potential for mycotoxin contamination, especially by fumonisin, produced by fungi of the genus Fusarium, mostly F. verticillioides. Fumonisins are involved in a variety of animals diseases and are associated with high incidence of esophageal cancer. Brazil, like many other countries, has established maximum tolerated levels of mycotoxins in food, by Resolution RDC number 7/2011, ANVISA. This paper presents a literature review of fumonisin in corn and derived products, covering aspects such as toxicity, detection and quantification, regulation and incidence in Brazil and some other countries. It was concluded that the monitoring of these contaminants is very important for public health and future measures are needed to reduce more and more public exposure to these toxins.