Enumeration of Fungal Isolates and Screening of Mycotoxigenic Species in Palm Sugar Samples by Polyphasic Identification

Authors

  • Monisha Krishnan Department of Microbiology, Rathnavel Subramaniam College of Arts and Science, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India 641402 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5865-999X
  • Mariyanancyarputha Lourdes Department of Microbiology, Rathnavel Subramaniam College of Arts and Science, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India 641402

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35882/ijahst.v2i5.149

Abstract

The global demand for alternative sugars is rising due to their lower glycemic index and other health benefits.  However, improper manufacture, processing, transport, export, and/or marketing of regional sugar products increases the risk of microbial infection upon consumption.  Fungal exposure and contamination of alternative sugars may occur as a result of enhanced hygroscopicity of certain sugar forms such as coconut and palm sugars, which strongly attract water molecules to their surface and thereby fungal spores, a property affected by adulteration practices, e.g. incorporation of cane sugar.  The present study highlights risks of unregulated processing of palm sugar in the form of fungal contaminants and their toxigenic potential.  Palm sugar was sampled for fungal isolates which were identified as Aspergillus flavus, A. niger, A. carbonarius, A. terreus, and A. fumigatus, followed by colony enumeration.  Subsequent extraction of fungal extracts by thin layer chromatography resulted in detection of mycotoxins, including aflatoxins B1 and G1, citrinin, and ochratoxin.  The findings confirmed that humid conditions may be optimal for the presence of toxigenic fungi in the palm sugar and production of toxic metabolites, indicating that more stringent regulation is required for palm sugar processing, as the toxins can lead to detrimental health consequences, including acute poisoning, nephropathy, and liver cancer.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

P. C. Vengaiah, D. Ravindrababu, G. N. Murthy, and K. R. Prasad, “Jaggery from Palmyrah palm (Borassus flabellifer L.) - Present status and scope. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge,” Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, vol. 12, pp. 714–717, 2013.

K. Srikaeo, J. Sangkhiaw, and W. Likittrakulwong, “Productions and functional properties of Palm Sugars,” Walailak Journal of Science and Technology (WJST), vol. 16, no. 11, pp. 897–907, 2018.

A. A. Atchley, “Nutritional value of palms,” Principes, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 138–143, 1984.

T. Kurniawan, J. Jayanudin, I. Kustiningsih and M. Adha Firdaus, "Palm Sap Sources, Characteristics, and Utilization in Indonesia", Journal of Food and Nutrition Research, vol. 6, no. 9, pp. 590-596, 2018.

D. Huynh Thi Le, W.-C. Lu, and P.-H. Li, “Sustainable Processes and chemical characterization of Natural Food Additives: Palmyra palm (Borassus Flabellifer Linn.) granulated sugar,” Sustainability, vol. 12, no. 7, p. 2650, 2020.

“Palm Sugar Market: Global Industry Analysis (2012–2016) and Forecast (2017–2025),” https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/, 17-Dec-2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/mediarelease/palm-sugar-market.asp. [Accessed: 22-Aug-2022].

P. Battilani, “Food mycology - a multifaceted approach to fungi and food.,” World Mycotoxin Journal, vol. 1, pp. 223–224, 2008. 10.3920/WMJ2008.x017.

V. G. Lilly and H. L. Barnett, “The utilization of sugars by fungi - ,” Research Repository, 01-Jan-1953. [Online]. Available: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1628&context=wv_agricultural_and_forestry_experiment_station_bulletins. [Accessed: 21-Aug-2022].

J. H. Dittmar, “Hygroscopicity of sugars and sugar mixtures,” Industrial & Engineering Chemistry, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 333–335, 1935. DOI: 10.1021/ie50303a021

J. C. Frisvad, “Taxonomy, chemodiversity, and chemoconsistency of Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Talaromyces species,” Frontiers in Microbiology, vol. 5, 2015. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2014.00773

M. Weidenbörner, “Plants and plant products and their mycotoxins (except cereals and cereal products),” Mycotoxins in Plants and Plant Products, pp. 499–520, 2018.

C. Viegas, Environmental mycology in public health: Fungi and mycotoxins risk assessment and management. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2016

A. Malik, S. Ali, M. Shahid, and R. Bhargava, “Occupational exposure to Aspergillus and aflatoxins among food-grain workers in India,” International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 189–193, 2014.

F. Wu, “Mycotoxin risk assessment for the purpose of setting international regulatory standards,” Environmental Science & Technology, vol. 38, no. 15, pp. 4049–4055, 2004.

C. R. Davies, F. Wohlgemuth, T. Young, J. Violet, M. Dickinson, J.-W. Sanders, C. Vallieres, and S. V. Avery, “Evolving challenges and strategies for fungal control in the Food Supply Chain,” Fungal Biology Reviews, vol. 36, pp. 15–26, 2021.

C. N. Ezekiel, O. A. Oyedele, B. Kraak, K. I. Ayeni, M. Sulyok, J. Houbraken, and R. Krska, “Fungal diversity and mycotoxins in low moisture content ready-to-eat foods in Nigeria,” Frontiers in Microbiology, vol. 11, 2020.

C. Braicu, C. Puia, E. Bodoki, and C. Socaciu, “Screening and Quantification of Aflatoxins and Ochratoxin A in Different Cereals Cultivated in Romania Using Thin-Layer Chromatography-Densitometry,” Journal of Food Quality, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 108–120, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-4557.2007.00187.x

Y. Younis and K. Malik, “TLC and HPLC assays of aflatoxin contamination in Sudanese peanuts and peanut products,” Kuwait Journal of Science and Engineering, vol. 30, no. 1, 2003.

A. Rahmani, S. Jinap, and F. Soleimany, “Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Mycotoxins,” Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 202–251, 2009.

P. Steyn, "Multimycotoxin analysis", Pure and Applied Chemistry, vol. 53, no. 4, pp. 891-902, 1981.

M. Abdallah, R. Krska and M. Sulyok, "Mycotoxin Contamination in Sugarcane Grass and Juice: First Report on Detection of Multiple Mycotoxins and Exposure Assessment for Aflatoxins B1 and G1 in Humans", Toxins, vol. 8, no. 11, p. 343, 2016. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins8110343

A. Saputro, D. Van de Walle and K. Dewettinck, "Physicochemical properties of coarse palm sap sugars as natural alternative sweetener", Food Bioscience, vol. 38, p. 100780, 2020.

R. E. Masithoh, F. Roosmayanti, K. Rismiwandira, and M. F. Pahlawan, “Detection of palm sugar adulteration by Fourier transform near-infrared (FT-NIR) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy,” Sugar Tech, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 920–929, 2021.

K. Rismiwandira, F. Roosmayanti, M. F. Pahlawan, and R. E. Masithoh, “Application of fourier transform near-infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy for detection of adulteration in Palm Sugar,” IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 653, no. 1, p. 012122, 2021.

J. Wiboonsirikul, “Differentiation between adulterated and non-adulterated palm sap using physical and chemical properties combined with discriminant analysis,” International Food Research Journal, vol. 23, no. 1, pp. 63–67, 2015.

R. van der Sman and S. Renzetti, "Understanding functionality of sucrose in cake for reformulation purposes", Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, vol. 61, no. 16, pp. 2756-2772, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2020.1786003

H. Hamad, M. Alma, H. Ismael and A. Goceri, "The Effect of Some Sugars on the Growth of Aspergillus niger", Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam Üniversitesi Doğa Bilimleri Dergisi, vol. 17, no. 4, p. 7, 2015.

K. K. Gaikwad, S. Singh, and A. Ajji, “Moisture Absorbers for Food Packaging Applications,” Environmental Chemistry Letters, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 609–628, 2018.A. Cunningham, W. Ingram, W. Kadati and I. Maduarta, "Opportunities, barriers and support needs: micro-enterprise and small enterprise development based on non-timber products in eastern Indonesia", Australian Forestry, vol. 80, no. 3, pp. 161-177, 2017.10.1080/00049158.2017.1329614.

W. Gunawan, R. Maulani, E. Hati, F. Awaliyah, A. Afif and R. Albab, "Evaluation of Palm Sap (Neera) Quality (Arenga pinnata Merr) in Processing of House Hold Palm Sugar (Case Study on Aren Farmers in Gunung Halu Village, Gunung Halu District, West Bandung Regency)", IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 466, no. 1, p. 012001, 2020.10.1088/1755-1315/466/1/012001.

A. Cunningham, W. Ingram, W. Kadati and I. Maduarta, "Opportunities, barriers and support needs: micro-enterprise and small enterprise development based on non-timber products in eastern Indonesia", Australian Forestry, vol. 80, no. 3, pp. 161-177, 2017.10.1080/00049158.2017.1329614.

Downloads

Published

2022-10-30

How to Cite

[1]
M. Krishnan and M. Lourdes, “Enumeration of Fungal Isolates and Screening of Mycotoxigenic Species in Palm Sugar Samples by Polyphasic Identification”, International Journal of Advanced Health Science and Technology, vol. 2, no. 5, pp. 255–263, Oct. 2022.

Issue

Section

Health Science