Comunicación corta. Aflatoxina y ochratoxina A totales en hígado, riñones y plasma de pollos contaminados experimentalmente

Mycotoxicosis, particularly that caused by aflatoxins and ochratoxins, is a serious problem for the poultry production industry. The aim of this study was to determine the total aflatoxin and ochratoxin A levels in liver and plasma, and kidneys and plasma, respectively, of chickens for fattening fed experimentally contaminated diets, and to assess the impact of these toxins on body weight increase and the feed conversion ratio (FCR). Forty eight 21 day-old Ross breeder chickens (n = 12 x four treatments) were fed diets containing different levels of mycotoxins: grower diet + ochratoxin A (200 mg/kg of feed) + total aflatoxin in different concentrations (T1 = 60 microg/kg of feed; T = 50 microg/kg; T3 = 30 microg/kg). Control chickens (T4) were fed only the grower diet. No significant differences were seen in the weight increase of chickens subjected to the different treatments. However, lower FCRs were seen in those exposed to T1 and T2. In general, the amount of total aflatoxin and ochratoxin A found in the liver, kidneys and plasma (determined by ELISA) were directly related to the amounts added to the experimental diets and feed consumption. Plasma ochratoxin A was always higher than kidney levels; this relationship was not seen for total aflatoxin.Las micotoxicosis, en particular las aflatoxicosis y ocratoxicosis, son un serio problema sanitario en la producción avícola. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar el nivel de aflatoxinas y ochratoxinas A en hígado y plasma, y riñones y plasma, respectivamente, de pollos alimentados con dietas experimentalmente contaminadas e investigar el impacto de estas toxinas en el peso corporal y el cociente de conversión del alimento (FCR). Se alimentaron 48 pollos Ross de 21 días de edad (n = 12 x cuatro tratamientos) con dietas conteniendo diferentes niveles de micotoxinas: una dieta de crecimiento + 200 mg/kg de ochratoxina A + aflatoxina total en diferentes concentraciones (T1 = 60 microg/kg; T2 = 50 microg/kg; T3 = 30 microg/kg). Lo pollos control (T4) fueron solamente alimentados con la dieta de engorde. No hubo diferencias significativas en el aumento de peso de los pollos sometidos a los diferentes tratamientos; sin embargo, se detectaron FCRs menores para los expuestos a T1 y T2. En general, la cantidad de aflatoxina total y ochratoxina A detectadas por ELISA en hígado, riñones y plasma fueron directamente proporcionales a los niveles de las micotoxinas añadidas a las dietas experimentales. La ochratoxina A en plasma fue siempre superior a la encontrada en riñón; esta relación no se detectó para la aflatoxina total

In vivo assessment of possible probiotic properties of Zymomonas mobilis in a Wistar rat model

In recent years the incorporation of probiotic bacteria into foods has received increasing scientific interest for health promotion and disease prevention. The safety and probiotic properties of Zymomonas mobilis CP4 (UFPEDA-202) was studied in a Wistar rat model fed the 109 colony forming units (cfu)/mL-1 of the assayed strain for 30 days. No abnormal clinical signs were noted in the group receiving viable cells of Z. mobilis and water (control) during the period of the experiment. There were no significant difference (p > 0.05) in feed intake and weight gain among mice fed the Z. mobilis in comparison to the control group. No bacteria were found in blood, liver and spleen of any animals. Mice receiving Z. mobilis showed significantly differences (p < 0.05) in total and differential leucocytes count, excepting for neutrophils, after the experimental period. Otherwise, it was not found in control group. Histological examination showed that feeding mice with Z. mobilis caused no signs of adverse effects on gut, liver and spleen. From these results, Z. mobilis CP4 (UFEPEDA-202) is likely to be nonpathogenic and safe for consumption, and could have a slight modulating effect on immunological performance in mice

Aproveitamento de soro lácteo na formulação de bebidas com frutas e hortaliças

O uso do soro lácteo como complemento na formulação de alimentos visando ao seu aproveitamento é uma alternativa para a obtenção de novos produtos. Neste trabalho, desenvolveram-se bebidas à base de soro oriundo de queijo coalho tipo A com frutas e hortaliças. Na formulação das bebidas, utilizaram-se diferentes proporções entre soro lácteo, frutas e hortaliças, com adição de 10% de açúcar. Seis bebidas foram formuladas e submetidas a um teste de preferência, e as três primeiras colocadas foram submetidas a um teste de aceitação sensorial. As três preferidas foram as bebidas sabor graviola, morango e goiaba. A bebida sabor graviola obteve aceitação com as melhores notas nos atributos sensoriais cor, sabor, aparência e qualidade global, seguida pela formulação de sabor morango, mas sem diferença significativa (P>0,05). A bebida sabor goiaba teve o diferencial no atributo odor e superou as bebidas sabor graviola e morango (P<0,05). Conclui-se que é viável a elaboração de bebidas à base de soro de queijo coalho com frutas