Toxigenic fungal and mycotoxin contamination of maize samples from different districts in Serbia

: This study was carried out in order to investigate the natural occurrence of toxigenic fungi and levels of zearalenone (ZEA), deoxynivalenol (DON) and aflatoxin B 1 (AFB 1 ) in the maize stored immediately after harvesting in 2016 and used for animal feed in Serbia. A total of 22 maize samples were collected from four different districts across the country: City of Belgrade (nine samples), Šumadija (eight samples), Podunavlje (four samples) and Kolubara (one sample). Toxigenic fungi were identified according to the morphological characteristics whereas the mycotoxins contamination were detected using biochemistry enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent (ELISA) assay. The tested samples were mostly infected with Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium spp., except that one sample originated from Kolubara was not contaminated with Aspergillus species. Fusarium graminearum was the most common species in the maize sample from Kolubara district (60%), F. verticillioides in the maize samples from Podunavlje (43.75%) and City of Belgrade samples were established, respectively. Generally, remarkable infection of all the tested samples with toxigenic fungal species from Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium genera were recorded. In addition, high contamination with mycotoxins ZEA, DON and AFB 1 were also recorded; nevertheless, only in one sample the level of DON exceeded the allowed legal limit (1750 μg kg -1 ) according to Regulation for unprocessed maize. Therefore, permanent mycological and mycotoxicological analyses of maize grain are necessary for risk assessment of fungal and mycotoxin contamination throughout the food chain. genus, was determined in the maize samples, depending on the district tested. F. graminearum was the most common species (60%) in the maize sample from Kolubara district, followed by F. verticillioides in the maize samples from Podunavlje (43.75%) and City of Belgrade districts (22.4%) and Penicillium spp. in the maize samples from Šumadija district (26.38%). In regard to the tested mycotoxins, ZEA, DON and AFB 1 , only DON exceeded the allowed limit (1750 μg kg -1 ; EC, 2007) in the maize sample from Kolubara district. This was expected due to the high incidence of F. graminearum in the maize sample from this district and a positive correlation between incidence of F. graminearum and DON level. These studies have confirmed the potential danger and risk from toxigenic species, primarily Fusarium species and their mycotoxins in the production of maize in agro-ecological conditions in Serbia. The obtained results justify the need for constant fungal and mycotoxin analyses of maize grain and other types of feeds, in order to find preventive measures for reducing these contaminants in the food chain. Future research should focus on the examination of the incidence and analysis the greater number of the samples from a number of localities, as well as a more detailed examination of the dependence of fungal and mycotoxin contamination from climatic factors in order to more accurately assess the effect of the locality (district) on the natural occurrence of these contaminants in the production of maize.