Fungi and mycotoxins in fresh bee pollen
| Author | Affiliation |
|---|---|
Sinkevičienė, Jolanta | |
| Date |
|---|
2019-09-26 |
Section Agro-innovations and Food Technologies
Bibliogr.: p. 72
CC BY 4.0
The aim of the present study was to determine the concentration of microscopic fungi and selected mycotoxins in fresh bee pollen, stored for different periods. In the study, 12 pollen samples collected from the same apiary families were investigated. Bees have collected the pollen from different plants. The moisture content of fresh pollen varied between 14.2 and 22.7%. During studies, the most prevalent fungal genera of Fusarium, Penicillium, Alternaria, Mucor and yeast were found in fresh bee pollen. The amounts of microscopic fungi increased from 2.9×103to 4.4×103cfu g-1as the pollen storage time increased. The significantly higest amounts of fungal colonies was determined after 3 days storage of undried pollen. The most significant Fusarium spp. increase (14.9%) was determined after 2 days of storage. The highest levels of mycotoxins ZEN and DON were determined after 3 days of pollen storage. One of the most important criteria for a bee pollen quality standard is microbiological contamination, which is higly influenced by environmental factors that influence the development and reproduction of microscopic fungi an d bacteria (Xu e et al., 2014). The fresh bee pollen is very hygroscopic and therefore very moist. Therefore pollen is a rich medium for microorganisms to grow and multiply (DeGrandi - Hoffman et al., 2013). Microscopic fungi are very difficult to control und er natural conditions (Filola et al., 2007). They are widespread in nature, have spores that are resistant to various environmental factors, wich not only enter in the bee pollen but can also enter in the honey (Popa et al., 2009). M ycotoxicoses caused by fungal mycotoxins can be caused by the harmful effects of mycotoxins, which are sec ondary m etabolites of fungi (Hani, 2012) . Mycotoxin contaminated food may result in cytotoxic, neurotoxic, immunosuppressive, teratogenic, mutagenic and carcinogenic effect s (Krnjaja et al., 2012 ). F ungi of Fusarium, Aspergillus , Penicillium, Alternaria, Cladosporium and Mucor genera were identified as the etiologic factors of the above - mentioned diseases (Krysinska - Traczyk et al., 2001 ; Smith et al., 1994). Special attentio n should be given to toxins produced by Fusarium spp.(fusariotoxins). Deoxynivalenol (DON) and zearalenone (ZEA) produced by F. culmorum and F. graminearum are mycotoxins that cause a variety of health problems (Smith et al., 1994) . The recovery of storage fungi (Aspergillus and Penicillium) in frech pollen presents a potential risk for human health, and must look resposibly of the post - harvest process (Nardoni et al., 2016). Some of the facto rs that can influence bee pollen storage is water activity (a w). He plays an important role, it is the amount of water needed for growth and development of microorganisms.