The mycobiota and toxicity of equine feeds

K.M. KELLER, B.D. QUEIROZ, L.M. KELLER, J.M. RIBEIRO, L.R. CAVAGLIERI, M.L. GONZALEZ PEREYRA, A.M. DALCERO, C.A.R. ROSA.

Carlos Paz, Argentina

Congreso; Congreso MYCOGLOBE; 2006

Feed contamination can lead to nutrient losses and detrimental effects on animal health and production. The purposes of this study were to investigate the mycobiota in equine mixed feeds and to determine aflatoxin B1 and fumonisin B1 natural contamination. Fungal enumeration of equine feed samples was done. A commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit was applied to quantify AFB1 and FB1. A comparison between ELISA and HPLC was carried out. Feed mold counts ranged less than 1 x 102 to 1 x 105 CFU g-1. The most frequent genus isolated was Aspergillus spp. (40.54%) followed by Penicillium spp. (18.38%) and Fusarium spp. (16.22%). The most prevalent Aspergillus spp. was A. flavus (36%). AFB1 values ranged between 0.01 to 99.4 mg kg-1. Fumonisin B1 levels ranged between 0.01 to 7.49 mg kg-1. HPLC and ELISA methods showed a positive correlation for AFB1 and FB1 determinations (r=0.9851 and r= 0.9791, respectively). The ELISA analytical method was efficient for aflatoxin B1 and fumonisin B1 detection. The scarcity of studies on natural fungal contamination and on the presence of aflatoxin B1 and fumonisin B1 in materials used as equine feed ingredients highlight the value and contribution of this study