50 research outputs found
Expanding the Paradigms of Plant Pathogen Life History and Evolution of Parasitic Fitness beyond Agricultural Boundaries
International audienc
Reduction of Moniliformin During Alkaline Cooking of Corn
The incidence of moniliformin (MON) producing Fusarium spp. in selected corn (Zea mays L.) samples from Mexico and the United States and the effects of alkaline cooking and the tortilla manufacturing processes on the reduction of MON were determined. The percentage of infected kernels with Fusariumspp. ranged from 0 to 22% in eight food-grade corn samples, including six from Mexico and two from the United States. Complete (100%) reduction of MON was observed when a naturally contaminated com sample containing 1.4 µg of MON/g of corn was used in a pilot-scale alkaline cooking and tortilla manufacturing process. In a companion laboratory-scale study, using a cultured corn sample containing 17.6 µg of MON/g of corn, a 71 % reduction of the toxin was observed during the process. Alkaline cooking appeared to be an effective method for reduction of MON in corn