Proteomic Changes in the Cytoplasmatic Fraction of Weaned Piglets Liver and Kidney Under Antioxidants and Mycotoxins Diets

Mycotoxin contamination represents a threat for human and animal health. Antioxidants can mitigate some of these effects due to their ability to scavenge free radicals, reduce oxidative stress, and have anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties. This work investigates the potential of antioxidants derived from grape seed and sea buckthorn to mitigate the adverse effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and ochratoxin A (OTA), as mycotoxins contamination in weaned piglet diets. We used an unbiased Data Independent Acquisition (DIA) approach to analyse the proteomic impact of OTA and AFB1-contaminated diets on liver and kidney cytoplasmic metabolism, particularly focusing on the conjugation phase. We show that some of the mycotoxins effects are partial mitigated by the antioxidants enriched diet. Additionally, in kidneys, some of the effects are synergistically amplified, such as proteins involved in the fatty acids degradation, peroxisome, PPAR signalling, translation, TCA cycle and the excretion pathways. Inclusion of antioxidants in the animal diet can have beneficial effects. Nevertheless, caution is advised, synergistic effects can occur with potentially more serious consequences than the effect of mycotoxins alone.