Effects of dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and ... - FINS

1 st WorkshopXIII International Feed Technology SymposiumMYCOTOXINS IN FEEDDobrila Jakić-Dimić, Ksenija NešićInstitute of Veterinary Medicine of Serbia, Autoput 3, Belgrade, SerbiaABSTRACTDespite years of research of the occurance and the presence of mycotoxins in feed andfood, as well as contemporary possibilities for their prevention, the problem ofpoisoning by these secondary metabolites of molds is still very current in the world. Yetit is estimated that about 25% of world production of cereals and other grains isannually contaminated by the identified species, and probably a larger percentage ofstill unknown mycotoxins.It is believed that over 220 species of molds have the characteristic of mycotoxinsproduction. Among large number of mycotoxins which have been identified so far, onlya small number are of medicinal, nutritive and economic significance. They are mainlyproducts of Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium species.Mycotoxicoses pose a nutritive-medical, but also a diagnostic problem, because certainmycotoxins cause changes in a number of organs. Diseases caused by mycotoxins arenot contagious, they are connected with food and/or feed, they are similar toavitaminoses, thay can not be treated with antibiotics or other medicines and they do notcause immune response in the organism because they are of the small mollecular mass,so that animals are permanently not protected from their effects. The content ofmycotoxins in feed more often causes the appearance of chronic mycotoxicoses, and theeffects of smaller quantities over a longer time period are the same as of biggerquantities over a short period.Timely detection of the presence of mycotoxins in feed and the subsequent eliminationof the contaminated feed from use, can aleviate the negative effects, but a certain time isrequired for the elimination of the resorbed quantities of mycotoxins and thedisappearance of the detrimental consequences. That is why constant and multilevelfeed monitoring must be practiced in order to secure efficient reaction for the successfulprevention of harmful effects of mycotoxins.Key words: feed, mycotoxins, mycotoxicosesINTRODUCTIONDespite years of research of the occurance and the presence of mycotoxins in feed andfood, as well as contemporary possibilities for their prevention, the problem of poisoningby these secondary metabolites of molds is still very current in the world. Yet it isestimated that about 25% of world production of cereals and other grains is annuallycontaminated by the identified species, and probably a larger percentage of stillunknown mycotoxins [13].Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of saprophytic fungi, which enter the body ofanimals and people mostly through contaminated feed/food. They induce a toxic90