Binding of Aflatoxin B1 to Lactic Acid Bacteria and Saccharomyces cerevisiae in vitro: A Useful Model to Determine the Most Efficient Microorganism

Mycotoxins are toxic fungal metabolites found as contaminants in many agricultural products. Feeds contaminated with mycotoxins have a health risk to animals and, as a consequence, may cause big economical losses due to the low efficacy of animal husbandry (Richard, 2007). In addition, directly or indirectly (animal by-products) contaminated foods may also have a health risk to humans (CAST, 2003; Hussein & Brasel, 2001; Wild, 2007). Aflatoxins (AFs), a group of potent mycotoxins with mutagnic, carcinogenic, teratogenic, hepatotoxic and immunosupresive properties, are of particular importance because of their major occurrence and adverse effects on animal and human health, generalized as ?aflatoxicosis? (CAST, 2003; Hussein & Brasel, 2001; Magnoli et al., 2011). The AFs are produced by genus Aspergillus, mainly A. flavus, A. parasiticus and A. nomius, that grow on a variety of raw material during growth, harvest, storage and transportation of for example, the cereal used in the preparation of food and feed commodities (Ito et al., 2001; Kurtzman et al., 1987; Payne, 1998; Pereyra et al., 2010). The investigation of strategies to prevent the presence of AFs in foods, as well as, to eliminate, inactivate or reduce the bio-availability of these mycotoxins in contaminated products include physical, chemical, and biological methods (Bueno et al., 2001; CAST, 2003; Kabak et al., 2006). Limitations such as the loss of nutritional and sensory qualities of the product, the expensive equipment required for these techniques and the impossibility to guarantee the desired results, have allowed us to consider the hipothesis that foods and feeds can always be potentially contaminated with aflatoxins. For instance, in the poultry industry aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is almost an unavoidable feed contaminant and levels from 0-200 ng/g have been reported (Dalcero et al., 1997). On the other hand, it is known that lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and some yeast, principally Saccharomyces cerevisiae, are capable to bind AFs in liquid media, apparently to cell wall components, polysaccharides and peptidoglycans of LAB (Haskard et al., 2001; Latinen et al., 2004) and glucomannans of yeast (Karaman et al., 2005; Raju & Devegowda 2000) and therefore could be used as potential mycotoxin decontaminating (Armando et al 2011; El-Nezami et al., 1998; Haskard et al., 2000, 2001; Hernandez-Mendoza et al., 2009; Lee et al., 2003; Peltonen et al., 2001; Shetty et al., 2007). The inclusion of appropriate microorganisms in the contaminated diet could prevent the absorption of mycotoxins during their passage in the gastrointestinal tract and eliminated in the faeces (Bueno et al., 2007; El-Nezami et al., 2000; Gratz et al., 2004; Gratz et al., 2007). Moreover, Kankaanpää et al. (2000) showed that the binding of AFB1 to the surface of LAB reduced their adhesive properties, and the accumulation of aflatoxins in the intestine may therefore be reduced via the increased excretion of an aflatoxin-bacteria complex. These considerations encouraged the recent emphasis on biological methods, but mainly focused on preventing AFs absorption in the gastrointestinal tract of the consumers, including these microorganisms in the diet and so prevent the aflatoxicosis effects. The first step in this direction is the selection of the most efficient microorganism for AFB1 removing and while many researchers have assayed LAB and yeast with AFB1 binding abilities (Ciegler et al., 1966; El-Nezami et al., 1998; Gourama & Bullerman, 1995; Haskard et al., 2001; Line et al., 1994; Oatley et al., 2000) no clear mechanism for this effect has been provided. Thus, this selection frequently is performed using a single concentration of AFB1, but we demonstrated that the microorganism efficiency may change when the mycotoxin concentration is modified (Bueno et al., 2007; Pizzolitto, 2011), therefore the microorganism selected could not be the most competent. In this context, we investigated the nature of the interaction between different microorganisms and AFB1 molecule, which led us to develop a model to explain the binding of AFB1 by LAB and Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains. This model allows an estimation of two important parameters related to a microorganism´s capacity for dietary decontamination: the number of binding sites for AFB1 in the surface microorganism (M) and the equilibrium constant of the process involved (Keq), both of them are useful in the selection of the most suitable microorganism in a wide range of AFB1 concentration (Bueno et al., 2007). In adittion, studies of viability of the microorganisms in the salivary and gastrointestinal tract, cell adhesion, autoaggregation, coaggregation and antimicrobial activity against pathogen strains, were also evaluated as a way to research potential beneficial properties on the host (Armando et al., 2011). Thus, in this chapter we describe the development and application of an in vitro methodology to evaluate the aflatoxin B1 binding ability, gastrointestinal tolerance and potential beneficial properties of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains, useful to select the more appropriated microorganism to be assayed in expensive, complicated but necessary in vivo studies.Fil: Pizzolitto, Romina Paola. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Bueno, Dante Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Armando, María Romina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología; ArgentinaFil: Cavaglieri, Lilia Reneé. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Dalcero, Ana Maria. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Salvano, Mario Armando. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentin

The effect of cold waves on mortality in urban and rural areas of Madrid

While many studies analyze the effect of extreme thermal events on health, little has been written about the effects of extreme cold on mortality. This scarcity of papers is particularly relevant when we search studies about extreme cold on the health of rural population. Therefore, we tried to analyze the effect of cold waves on urban areas and rural areas from Madrid and to test whether differentiated effects exist between both population classes. For this purpose, we analyzed data from the municipalities with over 10,000 inhabitants for the period from January 1, 2000 through December 31, 2013. Municipalities were classified as urban or rural (Eurostat), and they were grouped into similar climatological zones: Urban Metropolitan Centre (UMC), Rural Northern Mountains (RNM), Rural Centre (RC) and Southern Rural (SR). The dependent variable was the daily mortality rate due to natural causes per million inhabitants (CIE-X: A00-R99) that occurred between the months of November and March for the period. The independent variable was minimum daily temperature (ºC) (Tmin). Social and demographic contextual variables were used, including: population > age 64 (%), deprivation index and housing indicators. The analysis was carried out in three phases: (1) determination of the threshold temperature (Tthreshold) which defines the cold waves; (2) determination of the relative risk (RR) for cold waves using Poisson linear regression (GLM); and (3) using GLM of the binomial family, Odds Ratios (OR) were calculated to analyze the relationship between the frequency of the appearance of cold waves and the socioeconomic variables.The authors gratefully acknowledge the grants for projects ENPY376/18; ENPY470/19 and ENPY 107/18 from the Carlos III Institute of Health

Effects of local factors on adaptation to heat in Spain (1983-2018)

The European Union is currently immersed in policy development to address the effects of climate change around the world. Key plans and processes for facilitating adaptation to high temperatures and for reducing the adverse effects on health are among the most urgent measures. Therefore, it is necessary to understand those factors that influence adaptation. The aim of this study was to provide knowledge related to the social, climate and economic factors that are related to the evolution of minimum mortality temperatures (MMT) in Spain in the rural and urban contexts, during the 1983-2018 time period. For this purpose, local factors were studied regarding their relationship to levels of adaptation to heat. MMT is an indicator that allows for establishing a relationship to between mortality and temperature, and is a valid indicator to assess the capacity of adaptation to heat of a certain population. MMT is obtained through the maximum daily temperature and daily mortality of the study period. The evolution of MMT values for Spain was established in a previous paper. An ecological, longitudinal and retrospective study was carried out. Generalized linear models (GLM) were performed to identify the variables that appeared to be related to adaptation. The adaptation was calculated as the difference in variation in MMT based on the average increase in maximum daily temperatures. In terms of adaptation to heat, urban populations have adapted more than non-urban populations. Seventy-nine percent (n = 11) of urban provinces have adapted to heat, compared to twenty-one percent (n = 3) of rural provinces that have not adapted. In terms of urban zones, income level and habituation to heat (values over the 95th percentile) were variables shown to be related to adaptation. In contrast, among non-urban provinces, a greater number of housing rehabilitation licenses and a greater number of health professionals were variables associated with higher increases in MMT, and therefore, with adaptation. These results highlight the need to carry out studies that allow for identifying the local factors that are most relevant and influential in population adaptation. More studies carried out at a small scale are needed.The authors gratefully acknowledge the grants for projects ENPY107/18; ENPY 376/18, ENPY 470/19 and ENPY 340/20 from the Carlos III Institute of Health, and is supported by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge. Likewise, to the UNED for the financing for the publication in Open Access.S

Gender differences in adaptation to heat in Spain (1983-2018)

In Spain the average temperature has increased by 1.7 °C since pre-industrial times. There has been an increase in heat waves both in terms of frequency and intensity, with a clear impact in terms of population health. The effect of heat waves on daily mortality presents important territorial differences. Gender also affects these impacts, as a determinant that conditions social inequalities in health. There is evidence that women may be more susceptible to extreme heat than men, although there are relatively few studies that analyze differences in the vulnerability and adaptation to heat by sex. This could be related to physiological causes. On the other hand, one of the indicators used to measure vulnerability to heat in a population and its adaptation is the minimum mortality temperature (MMT) and its temporal evolution. The aim of this study was to analyze the values of MMT in men and women and its temporal evolution during the 1983-2018 period in Spain's provinces. An ecological, longitudinal retrospective study was carried out of time series data, based on maximum daily temperature and daily mortality data corresponding to the study period. Using cubic and quadratic fits between daily mortality rates and the temperature, the minimum values of these functions were determined, which allowed for determining MMT values. Furthermore, we used an improved methodology that provided for the estimation of missing MMT values when polynomial fits were inexistent. This analysis was carried out for each year. Later, based on the annual values of MMT, a linear fit was carried out to determine the rate of evolution of MMT for men and for women at the province level. Average MMT for all of Spain's provinces was 29.4 °C in the case of men and 28.7 °C in the case of women. The MMT for men was greater than that of women in 86 percent of the total provinces analyzed, which indicates greater vulnerability among women. In terms of the rate of variation in MMT during the period analyzed, that of men was 0.39 °C/decade, compared to 0.53 °C/decade for women, indicating greater adaptation to heat among women, compared to men. The differences found between men and women were statistically significant. At the province level, the results show great heterogeneity. Studies carried out at the local level are needed to provide knowledge about those factors that can explain these differences at the province level, and to allow for incorporating a gender perspective in the implementation of measures for adaptation to high temperatures.The authors wish to thank the funding provided by the ENPY 304/20, ENPY 376/18 and ENPY 107/18 projects of the Carlos III Health Institute III (ISCIII). They also wish to thank the UNED for funding this publication in open access.S

Effects of local factors on adaptation to heat in Spain (1983–2018)

The European Union is currently immersed in policy development to address the effects of climate change around the world. Key plans and processes for facilitating adaptation to high temperatures and for reducing the adverse effects on health are among the most urgent measures. Therefore, it is necessary to understand those factors that influence adaptation. The aim of this study was to provide knowledge related to the social, climate and economic factors that are related to the evolution of minimum mortality temperatures (MMT) in Spain in the rural and urban contexts, during the 1983–2018 time period. For this purpose, local factors were studied regarding their relationship to levels of adaptation to heat.The authors gratefully acknowledge the grants for projects ENPY107/18; ENPY 376/18, ENPY 470/19 and ENPY 340/20 from the Carlos III Institute of Health, and is supported by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge

Gender differences in adaptation to heat in Spain (1983–2018)

In Spain the average temperature has increased by 1.7 °C since pre-industrial times. There has been an increase in heat waves both in terms of frequency and intensity, with a clear impact in terms of population health. The effect of heat waves on daily mortality presents important territorial differences. Gender also affects these impacts, as a determinant that conditions social inequalities in health. There is evidence that women may be more susceptible to extreme heat than men, although there are relatively few studies that analyze differences in the vulnerability and adaptation to heat by sex. This could be related to physiological causes. On the other hand, one of the indicators used to measure vulnerability to heat in a population and its adaptation is the minimum mortality temperature (MMT) and its temporal evolution.The authors wish to thank the funding provided by the ENPY 304/20, ENPY 376/18 and ENPY 107/18 projects of the Carlos III Health Institute III (ISCIII)

Hongos ambientales en una biblioteca : un año de estudio

Este artículo analiza los hongos presentes en una biblioteca científica situada en un centro de investigación (el cual trabaja con microorganismos) en Tucumán, Argentina, desde Febrero del 2000 a Enero del 2001. Se identificaron 33 géneros, además de las levaduras y de los hongos clasificados como Mycelia sterilia y Basidiomycetes. Los géneros que presentaron la mayor frecuencia fueron Cladosporium sp. (30.1%), Fusarium sp (8.6%), Alternaria sp. (8.4%), Acremonium sp. (6.4%) y Aspergillus sp. (5.5%). La mayor cantidad de esporas fúngicas fue observada en Octubre y la mínima en Julio. La temperatura estuvo entre 16,5 y 28,5ºC. El género Cladosporium sp. fue aislado en todos los meses muestreados. Este género predominó en Febrero (19.6%), junto a Alternaria sp., Mayo (29.6%), Junio (35.7%), Julio (33.3%), Agosto (40%), septiembre (27.5%) y octubre (51.3%), mientras que Acremonium sp. predominó en Marzo (26.5%), Ceratosporium sp. en Abril (20.4%) y los Basidiomycetes en Noviembre (17.6%). Además, Alternaria sp. fue el más abundante en Diciembre (20%) y Enero (35.9%). A pesar del uso de un muestreo no volumétrico, este estudio provee una información útil sobre la incidencia de los hongos ambientales en la biblioteca testada. Sabiendo que su presencia es incuestionable y difícil de erradicar, son necesarias futuras investigaciones para examinar los efectos de su exposición sobre los problemas de salud relacionados. | This article analyzes the fungi present in a scientific library situated in a microorganism research center in Tucuman, Argentina. The analysis was conducted from February, 2000, to January, 2001. Thirty-three fungal genera, various yeasts, and those two fungi classified as Mycelia sterilia and Basidiomycetes were identified. The genera Cladosporium sp. (30.1%), Fusarium sp (8.6%), Alternaria sp. (8.4%), Acremonium sp. (6.4%) and Aspergillus sp. (5.5%) were predominantly isolated. The maximum number of culturable mold propagules was observed in October and the minimum in July. Overall, the temperature was between 16.5 and 28.5ºC. The genus Cladosporium sp. was found in all months during which sampling were gathered. This fungus predominated in February (19.6%) with Alternariasp., May (29.6%), June (35.7%), July (33.3%), August (40%), September (27.5%) and October (51.3%) while Acremonium sp. was prominent in March (26.5%), Ceratosporium sp. in April (20.4%) and Basidiomycetes in November (17.6%). Furthermore, Alternaria sp. was the most abundant in December (20%) and January (35.9%). In spite of the use of a non-volumetric sampler, the study provides useful information on the incidence of airborne fungi in the tested library. As we know that fungal presence is inevitable and difficult to eradicate, future investigations will be needed to examine the effect of human beings´ exposure to these levels of fungi

Hongos ambientales en una biblioteca: un año de estudio

The article analises the fungi present in a scientific library located at an investigation center (which works with microorganisms), in Tucumán, Argentina, since February 2000 to January 2001. It identified 33 genera, bisedes ferments and classified fungi like Mycelia sterilia and Basidiomyctes. The most frequent genera were: Cladosporium sp. (30.1%), Fusarium sp (8.6%), Alternaria sp. (8.4%), Acremonium sp. (6.4%) and Aspergillus sp. (5.5%). The highest ammount of fungic spores was observated in Octobre since the minimum was in July. The temperature ranged between 16.5 C and 28.5 C. The genre Cladosporium sp. was isolated in all the months under study. This genre predominted in February(19.6%), together with Alternaria sp., May (29.6%), June (35.7%), July (33.3%), August (40%), September (27.5%) and Octobre (51.3%), while Acremonium sp. predominated March (26.5%), Ceratosporium sp. in April (20.4%) and Basidiomycetes in November (17.6%). Besides, Alternaria sp. was most aboundant in December (20%) and January (35.9%). Despite having used an non volumentric sample, the study provides usefull information about the incidence of environmetal fungi at the library under study. Knowing that its presence is unquestionable and difficult of erradicate, further invetigations are needed to examinate the effects of exposing to it over the health

Airbone fungi in a library: one-year study

Este artículo analiza los hongos presentes en una biblioteca científica si-tuada en un centro de investigación (el cual trabaja con microorganismos) en Tucu-mán, Argentina, desde Febrero del 2000 a Enero del 2001. Se identificaron 33 géne-ros, además de las levaduras y de los hongos clasificados como Mycelia sterilia y Basidiomycetes. Los géneros que presentaron la mayor frecuencia fueron Cladospo-rium sp. (30.1%), Fusarium sp (8.6%), Alternaria sp. (8.4%), Acremonium sp. (6.4%) y Aspergillus sp. (5.5%). La mayor cantidad de esporas fúngicas fue obser-vada en Octubre y la mínima en Julio. La temperatura estuvo entre 16,5 y 28,5ºC. El género Cladosporium sp. fue aislado en todos los meses muestreados. Este género predominó en Febrero (19.6%), junto a Alternaria sp., Mayo (29.6%), Junio (35.7%), Julio (33.3%), Agosto (40%), septiembre (27.5%) y octubre (51.3%), mientras que Acremonium sp. predominó en Marzo (26.5%), Ceratosporium sp. en Abril (20.4%) y los Basidiomycetes en Noviembre (17.6%). Además, Alternaria sp. fue el más abundante en Diciembre (20%) y Enero (35.9%). A pesar del uso de un muestreo no volumétrico, este estudio provee una información útil sobre la inciden-cia de los hongos ambientales en la biblioteca testada. Sabiendo que su presencia es incuestionable y difícil de erradicar, son necesarias futuras investigaciones para examinar los efectos de su exposición sobre los problemas de salud relacionados.ABSTRACT: This article analyzes the fungi present in a scientific library situated in a microorganism research center in Tucuman, Argentina. The analysis was conducted from February, 2000, to January, 2001. Thirty-three fungal genera, various yeasts, and those two fungi classified as Mycelia sterilia and Basidiomycetes were identified. The genera Cladosporium sp. (30.1%), Fusarium sp (8.6%), Alternaria sp. (8.4%), Acremonium sp. (6.4%) and Aspergillus sp. (5.5%) were predominantly iso-lated. The maximum number of culturable mold propagules was observed in Octo-ber and the minimum in July. Overall, the temperature was between 16.5 and 28.5ºC. The genus Cladosporium sp. was found in all months during which sampling were gathered. This fungus predominated in February (19.6%) with Alternaria sp., May (29.6%), June (35.7%), July (33.3%), August (40%), September (27.5%) and October (51.3%) while Acremonium sp. was prominent in March (26.5%), Ceratosporium sp. in April (20.4%) and Basidiomycetes in November (17.6%). Fur-thermore, Alternaria sp. was the most abundant in December (20%) and January (35.9%). In spite of the use of a non-volumetric sampler, the study provides useful information on the incidence of airborne fungi in the tested library. As we know that fungal presence is inevitable and difficult to eradicate, future investigations will be needed to examine the effect of human beings´ exposure to these levels of fungi

Micotoxinas: diagnóstico y prevención en aves de corral

La micotoxicosis es una intoxicación que puede afectar al hombre y los animales y proviene del consumo, inhalación o contacto de alimentos contaminados por micotoxinas. Estas son metabolitos tóxicos producidos por hongos principalmente de los géneros Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium y, en menor grado, Alternaria entre otros. Su presencia en granos y alimentos balanceados, tiene un alto impacto en la salud humana-animal y disminuye la calidad y precio de los mismos. La más importante para las aves son: aflatoxinas, ocratoxinas, zearalenona, toxina T-2, vomitoxina, citrina y fumonisinas. Los efectos que producen en los animales pueden ser agudos (hepatitis, nefritis, hemorragias, necrosis del epitelio oral y enérico y muerte), crónicos (reducción en la producción) o la aparición de patologías asociadas a la disminución en la resistencia inmunológica. El inicio del problema puede relacionarse con una partida nueva de alimento, un cambio de proveedor o el uso de materias primas de baja calidad. La forma más adecuada de evitar las intoxicaciones es impedir la ingesta de alimentos contaminados por micotoxinas.Las medidas de prevención para minimizar este problema en los alimentos pueden realizarse antes (precosecha), durante (cosecha) o después de la cosecha (postcosecha). El uso de adsorbentes o secuestrantes y/o levadura de cerveza en el alimento para aves, es una interesante propuesta para detoxificar los piensos contaminados. La utilización de especias, productos de ginseng, cafeína, alfalfa, colestiramina, bacterias y hongos para comnatir esta intoxicación todavía deben ser más estudiadas para su aplicación en avez. La mayoría de los países sólo cuentan con regulaciones principalmente para la presencia de aflatoxinas en los alimentos de uso animal y humano. Se espera que en un futuro próximo la legislación se extienda a las otras micotoxinas