Occurrence and Exposure Assessment of Aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin A in Pearl Millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) from Tunisia

Ochratoxin A (OTA) and Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) are toxic secondary  metabolites produced by certain mold species. In this primarily survey, we examined the OTA and AFB1 contamination of pearl millet grains distributed in Tunisia.

Twenty-five pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) samples from different regions of Tunisia were analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with fluorescence detector in order to evaluate the contamination with of AFB1 and OTA. Statistical tests were performed with XLSTAT 2018.

AFB1 and OTA were detected in 32 and 28% millet samples, respectively. Mean amounts of these mycotoxins in the contaminated samples were of 24.54±17.54 µg/kg for OTA and 22.72±23.09 µg/kg for AFB1. Approximately, 28 and 24% of analyzed samples were found above the European Union limits for AFB1 and OTA, respectively. The estimated daily intake of OTA and AFB1 were 3.76 and 3.89 ng/kg b.w. per day, respectively. No significantly (p>0.05) difference in OTA and AFB1 contamination rate was found between samples taken from different regions.

Consumption of millet in Tunisia might be an important contributing factor to the risk of dietary exposure to OTA and AFB1.