Fumonisins and their effects on the animal health status (a review)

Abstract

Fumonisins are toxic metabolites of the fungus Fusarium moniliforme, which is a common contaminant of corn everywhere in the world. The fumonisins are carcinogenic in laboratory rats, and cause acute toxicity of domestic animals which mimics field cases of disease attributed to contamination of feed by Fusarium moniliforme. These include both equine leukoencephalomalacia and porcine pulmonary oedema. Fusarium moniliforme contamination of corn consumed by humans in certain areas of the world is associated with a high incidence of oesophageal cancer, and fumonisins may be responsible for this. Analytical methods have been developed for fumonisins, but improvements are needed to enable more accurate, less expensive and more rapid assays of food and feedstuff's to be performed. Fumonisins are structurally similar to sphingosine. and may exert their biological activity through their ability to block key enzymes (sphinganine- and sphingosine-N-acyltransferases) involved in sphingolipid biosynthesis. Much more research is required for the purpose of defining the extent to which this mycotoxin adversely affects the food supply, and its involvement in animal and human diseases. This review says about the most significant international and Hungarian results of the fumonisin research projects. According to the experiments up to now the fumonisins can lead to prenatal toxicosis and be excreted in the mother milk.