A methanolic extract of Zanthoxylum bungeanum modulates secondary metabolism regulator genes in Aspergillus flavus and shuts down aflatoxin production

Zanthoxylum bungeanum as a natural pickling spice alleviates health risks in animal-derived foods via up-regulating glutathione S-transferase, down-regulating cytochrome P450 1A

Endogenous aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) was quantified in five hundred and forty Hengshan goat meat samples (0.00 ± 23.09 μg kg^-1). Zanthoxylum bungeanum (Z. bungeanum), as a natural pickling spice, can ameliorate the flavor of animal-derived food (goat meat). Yet, considering the direct administration of Z. bungeanum in AFB1-contaminated goat meat, the degradation mechanisms of AFB1 remain elusive. Here, UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS-based integrative metabolomics (LOQ: 1.74-59.54 μg kg^-1) and proteomics analyses were executed to determine the effects of Z. bungeanum in the biotransformation of AFB1. Z. bungeanum (1.50 %, w/w) application mediated the metabolism of xenobiotics by cytochrome P450, significantly down-regulated cytochrome P450 1A and stimulated the up-regulation of glutathione S-transferase levels in AFB1-contaminated goat meat, leading to degradation of AFB1 (20.00-3.39 μg kg^-1). Metabolomics assays indicated that Z. bungeanum up-regulated l-histidine (1.43-2.21 mg kg^-1) and l-arginine, manifesting potential applications for the contribution of Z. bungeanum to the nutritional value of goat meat.

Comparing the effects of essential oils and methanolic extracts on the inhibition of Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus growth and production of aflatoxins

The antifungal and antiaflatoxigenic effects of four distinct plant species against Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus were investigated. Essential oils and methanolic extracts were prepared from aerial parts of Lippia javanica, Ocimum gratissimum, Satureja punctata, and stem barks of Toddalia asiatica by hydro-distillation and maceration, respectively. The poisoned food method was used to confirm the antifungal activity of essential oils and methanolic extracts from four different plant species against Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus, and high-performance liquid chromatography was used to quantify the antiaflatoxigenic activity. The essential oils of Satureja punctata and Lippia javanica showed the highest antiaflatoxigenic activity against the fungi strains tested at concentrations of 1.25, 2.5, and 5 µL/mL, followed by Ocimum gratissimum essential oil while Toddalia asiatica essential oil exerted moderate antiaflatoxigenic activity. Meanwhile, the methanolic extracts showed a wide spectrum of low to high antifungal and antiaflatoxigenic activities at concentrations of 125, 250, and 500 µg/mL against A. flavus and A. parasiticus. This study has indicated that the essential oils of Satureja punctate, Lippia javanica, and Ocimum gratissimum had substantial antifungal and antiaflatoxigenic activities compared to their methanolic extracts, while Toddalia asiatica methanolic extract had a moderate antifungal activity compared to its essential oil.

May phytophenolics alleviate aflatoxins-induced health challenges? A holistic insight on current landscape and future prospects

The future GCC-connected environmental risk factors expedited the progression of nCDs. Indeed, the emergence of AFs is becoming a global food security concern. AFs are lethal carcinogenic mycotoxins, causing damage to the liver, kidney, and gastrointestinal organs. Long-term exposure to AFs leads to liver cancer. Almost a variety of food commodities, crops, spices, herbaceous materials, nuts, and processed foods can be contaminated with AFs. In this regard, the primary sections of this review aim to cover influencing factors in the occurrence of AFs, the role of AFs in progression of nCDs, links between GCC/nCDs and exposure to AFs, frequency of AFs-based academic investigations, and world distribution of AFs. Next, the current trends in the application of PPs to alleviate AFs toxicity are discussed. Nearly, more than 20,000 published records indexed in scientific databases have been screened to find recent trends on AFs and application of PPs in AFs therapy. Accordingly, shifts in world climate, improper infrastructures for production/storage of food commodities, inconsistency of global polices on AFs permissible concentration in food/feed, and lack of the public awareness are accounting for a considerable proportion of AFs damages. AFs exhibited their toxic effects by triggering the progression of inflammation and oxidative/nitrosative stress, in turn, leading to the onset of nCDs. PPs could decrease AFs-associated oxidative stress, genotoxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic effects by improving cellular antioxidant balance, regulation of signaling pathways, alleviating inflammatory responses, and modification of gene expression profile in a dose/time-reliant fashion. The administration of PPs alone displayed lower biological properties compared to co-treatment of these metabolites with AFs. This issue might highlight the therapeutic application of PPs than their preventative content. Flavonoids such as quercetin and oxidized tea phenolics, curcumin and resveratrol were the most studied anti-AFs PPs. Our literature review clearly disclosed that considering PPs in antioxidant therapies to alleviate complications of AFs requires improvement in their bioavailability, pharmacokinetics, tissue clearance, and off-target mode of action. Due to the emergencies in the elimination of AFs in food/feedstuffs, further large-scale clinical assessment of PPs to decrease the consequences of AFs is highly required.

Biocontrol of Fusarium graminearum, a Causal Agent of Fusarium Head Blight of Wheat, and Deoxynivalenol Accumulation: From In Vitro to In Planta

Crop diseases caused by Fusarium graminearum threaten crop production in both commercial and smallholder farming. F. graminearum produces deoxynivalenol mycotoxin, which is stable during food and feed processing. Therefore, the best way to prevent the sporulation of pathogens is to develop new prevention strategies. Plant-based pesticides, i.e., natural fungicides, have recently gained interest in crop protection as alternatives to synthetic fungicides. Herein we show that treatment with the methanolic extract of medicinal plant Zanthoxylum bungeanum (M20 extract), decreased F. graminearum growth and abrogated DON production. The F. graminearum DNA levels were monitored by a quantitative TaqMan real-time PCR, while DON accumulation was assessed by HPLC quantification. This M20 extract was mainly composed of four flavonoids: quercetin, epicatechin, kaempferol-3-O-rhamnoside, and hyperoside. The in vitro bioassay, which measured the percent inhibition of fungal growth, showed that co-inoculation of four F. graminearum strains with the M20 extract inhibited the fungal growth up to 48.5%. After biocontrol treatments, F. graminearum DNA level was reduced up to 85.5% compared to that of wheat heads, which received F. graminearum mixture only. Moreover, DON production was decreased in wheat heads by 73% after biocontrol treatment; meanwhile in wheat heads inoculated with F. graminearum conidia, an average of 2.263 ± 0.8 mg/kg DON was detected. Overall, this study is a successful case from in vitro research to in planta, giving useful information for wheat protection against F. graminearum responsible for Fusarium Head Blight and DON accumulation in grains. Further studies are needed to study the mechanism by which M20 extract inhibited the DON production and what changes happened to the DON biosynthetic pathway genes.