NATURAL OCCURRENCE OF AFLATOXINS IN BREAD IN NIGERIA

Abstract

A study was conducted in Nigeria on samples of brown bread for growth of moulds and natural occurrence of aflatoxins. Mycological analysis showed the presence of six genera of filamentous fungi, Aspergillus, Rhizopus, Mucor, Penicillium, Alternaria and Geotrichum. Thin layer chromatography (TLC) analysis of bread extracts revealed the presence of aflatoxins in 11 samples. All the isolates of Aspergillus flavus and A. parasotocis produced aflatoxins