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Title: AFFINITY COLUMN CLEANUP FOR THE ANALYSIS OF FUMONISINS AND THEIR HYDROLYSIS PRODUCTS IN CORN

Author
item Maragos, Chris
item Bennett, Glenn
item Richard, John

Submitted to: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/14/1996
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: The fumonisins, mycotoxins produced by several Fusaria, are present in corn grown worldwide. Contaminated feed has been implicated in a number of cases of disease in horses and swine. The risk that fumonisins may pose to human health is an area of active investigation. This research describes an improved method for detecting and measuring fumonisins in corn and corn-products.

Technical Abstract: Fumonisins, toxic metabolites of certain Fusarium molds, can be found in corn and corn-based foods at levels sufficient to cause disease in livestock. Widely used methods of analysis involve organic extraction followed by isolation with either C18 or strong anion exchange columns. We report the development of an affinity column procedure that simultaneously isolated both intact and hydrolyzed fumonisins from corn. The columns were prepared using two monoclonal antibodies with differing specificities, the first (P2A5-3-F3) bound intact fumonisins while the second (P2F11-3-H7) bound their hydrolysis products. Corn samples were extracted with methanol/ phosphate buffer (80/20, v/v) and the extract was diluted and applied to the affinity column. Recoveries of FB1 from corn spiked with 0.5 to 0.8 ppm averaged 87%. Recoveries of HFB1 over the range of 0.25 to 1.25 ppm averaged 103%. Affinity columns capable of binding both intact and hydrolyzed fumonisins allow for the analysis of both sets of toxins simultaneously from a single methanolic extract.