Reduction of dietary mycotoxins: could food packaging be a future solution?

Abstract

Mycotoxins, toxic secondary metabolites produced by certain filamentous fungi, are naturally occurring and practically unavoidable substances that remain a serious public health issue. These low molecular weight compounds (usually less than 1000 Daltons) can enter human food chain either directly from plant-based food components contaminated with mycotoxins (e.g. cereals and cereal-based products) or by indirect contamination from the growth of toxigenic fungi on food. Microbial spoilage of food products and the consequent waste problem causes large economic losses for both the food industry and the consumer. Consumption of mycotoxin-contaminated food can cause serious health hazards, including carcinogenic, immunotoxic, teratogenic, neurotoxic, nephrotoxic and hepatotoxic effects. Consequently, the use of strategies that reduce the described impact of these food contaminants assumes imperative relevance. Currently, chemical preservatives are usually used to prevent some of the consequences of fungi spoilage. These preservatives also present several drawbacks, making essential the development of “clean” alternatives. New alternatives from natural sources have been studied such as the use of essential oils and plant extracts. These natural sources revealed a potential to reduce fungi growth, including species that are toxigenic, leading to a reduction of mycotoxin food contamination. However, scarce studies described the use of methodologies that capture directly previously produced mycotoxins from contaminated food products, decreasing their availability to produce toxic effects. The present work aims to review the main studies focusing on the natural sources of food packaging systems that could contribute to 1) reduce the production of mycotoxins through the inhibition of fungi growth; and 2) capture mycotoxins directly from food, protecting human from the toxic effects. Food packaging systems that warrant simultaneously the inhibition of fungi growth and mycotoxins capture are far from being well established. The present work contributes to clarify if these systems could be used as a future solution to avoid mycotoxins’ toxic effects, constituting a new avenue of future research.