Detection of Aflatoxins, Mutagens and Carcinogens in Black, White andGreen Peppers (Piper Nigrum L.)

Aflatoxins, bis-dihydro-furancoumarins, are secondary metabolites that are produced by molds of Aspergillus sp. with adverse effects in humans and animals. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies aflatoxins in Group 1 of proven human carcinogens. Thus, aflatoxins in foods are highly regulated throughout the world. The purpose of this research was to identify and quantify aflatoxins in 54 pepper samples (19 black, 19 white and 16 green peppers) from markets in Egypt, India, Turkey and the 16 boroughs of Mexico City, as well as to validate the experimental method used. All samples were contaminated with at least one aflatoxin: 95% (51/54) were contaminated with aflatoxin B1 (0.1 to 218 μg kg-1); 80% (43/54) with aflatoxin B2 (0.4 to 382 μg kg-1); 67% (36/54) with aflatoxin G1 (0.4 to 612 μg kg-1); and 93% (50/54) with aflatoxin G2 (1.37 to 494 μg kg-1). Only 9.26% of the samples (5/54) were under the Mexican legislation limit, whereas all foreign samples surpassed the limits established for their respective countries. Although the aflatoxin concentrations in peppers are high, their ingestion is minimal because peppers are used in only small quantities as a flavor-enhancing product. Therefore, the contribution of aflatoxins from a pepper to an organism is relatively low in comparison to other agricultural products, such as maize, pistachio, peanuts and dairy products. Green pepper was the most contaminated with aflatoxins, white pepper was the least contaminated and black pepper had an intermediate level of contamination. This study describes a detailed analysis of aflatoxin contamination in pepper in three different ripening stages: green, black and white. The lack of normativity in countries on this subject prevents the reduction of AF concentrations in the diet