Toxigenic mycoflora and aflatoxins production ability in feed intended for breeding chinchilla.

LANDA F.,; GONZÁLEZ PEREYRA M.L.,; PENA G.,; CAVAGLIERI L.,; DALCERO A.M,; DA ROCHA ROSA C.A.,; MAGNOLI C.

Merida, Yucatán, México

Congreso; VI Latin American Congress of Mycotoxicology and II International Symposium on Fungal and Algal Toxins in Industry; 2010

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites secreted by fungi, mostly belonging to the genera Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp. and Fusarium spp. They are produced in cereal grains as well as forages before, during and after harvest, in various environmental conditions. Due to the diversity of their toxic effects and their synergetic properties, mycotoxins are considered as risky to the consumers of contaminated foods. The presence of mycotoxins in feeds may decrease the feed intake and affect animal performance. Aflatoxins (AF) are a group of naturally occurring mycotoxins produced by Aspergillus species, especially A. flavus and A. parasiticus, which grow in a wide variety of improperly stored food commodities (Guengerich et al., 1998). Chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera) are rabbit-sized crepuscular rodents native to the Andes Mountains in South America. They are farm raised and are currently used by the fur industry and as pets. The growing international demand for chinchilla fur makes the breeding of these animals a highly profitable activity in Argentina. Cases of acute aflatoxicosis have been reported worldwide in dogs, pigs, or cattle that consume naturally contaminated feed (CAST 2003; GMP 2005). Although chinchillas are known to be very sensitive to mycotoxins, few data about acute toxicosis have been reported (González Pereyra et al, 2008). The aims of present study were 1) to isolate and identify potential mycotoxicogenic mycobiota from chinchilla feeds and, 2) to determine the aflatoxigenic ability of isolated Aspergillus section Flavi.