Short communication: Aflatoxin M₁ in dairy products sold in Şanlıurfa, Turkey.
The aim of this study was to detect the presence of aflatoxin M₁ (AFM1) in samples of raw milk (n=38), UHT milk (n=12), white pickled cheese (n=50), and yogurt (n=50) collected from the Şanlıurfa city markets and locally produced dairy products by ELISA. The mean contamination rates were 56.74 ± 40.32, 43.1 ± 23.19, 103.2 ± 29.13, and 55.28 ± 12.68 ng/kg, respectively, for raw milk, UHT milk, white pickled cheese, and yogurt. According to the data, 21 (55%) raw milk, 3 (25%) UHT milk, 10 (20%) white pickled cheese, and 10 (20%) yogurt samples were contaminated with AFM1 over the acceptable levels (≥50 ng/kg), ranging from 0.82 to 130.89 ng/kg. None of the white pickled cheese samples contained AFM1 levels above the Turkish legal limit (250 ng/kg). Consequently, the AFM1 contamination levels determined in this study in white pickled cheese were not considered to pose a serious public health hazard. However, the AFM1 levels in raw and UHT milk and yogurt samples indicate an increased human health risk in Turkey related to high aflatoxin levels. Therefore, milk and dairy products have to be monitored by the Turkish public health authorities continuously to detect AFM1 contamination.
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Harran University, 63200, Şanlıurfa, Turkey. Electronic address: karacal9876@hotmail.com.
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Temamogullari
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kafkas University, 36300, Kars, Turkey.
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Kanici
D016607:Aflatoxin M1 / Q000032:analysis*; D000818:Animals; D002611:Cheese / Q000032:analysis / Q000382:microbiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry / Q000382:microbiology*; D014421:Turkey; D015014:Yogurt / Q000032:analysis / Q000382:microbiology
D016607:Aflatoxin M1
aflatoxin M(1); milk; white pickled cheese; yogurt