Aflatoxin Contamination in Chilies from Punjab Pakistan with Reference to Climate Change

High prevalence of liver cancer is caused by aflatoxins in developing countries. The consumption of AFs contaminated foodstuff by humans or animals results in several carcinogenic diseases including liver cancer. Also, there is a need to know base line levels of aflatoxin in crops to know when abnormal concentrations may occur, for example, from climate change. Total aflatoxins were determined in 156 chili samples from Pakistan by reverse phase HPLC with florescence detection in work undertaken in that country. The limits of detection and quantification for aflatoxin 131 and aflatoxin G(1) were 0.05 and 0.5 mu g kg(-1), while for aflatoxin G(2) and aflatoxin B-2 they were 0.1 and 0.60 mu g kg(-1). Total aflatoxins were determined in whole (n = 78) and ground (n = 78) chilies and the concentration were high in many cases. Aflatoxins were detected in 26 (33%) of whole chilies: concentration range was from 0.00 to 81.5 mu g kg(-1). The equivalent values for ground chilies were 31(40%) and 0.00 to 84.8 mu g kg(-1). The percentage of samples greater than the European Union statutory limit for AFB, and total aflatoxins were 26 and 19%, respectively. (C) 2011 Friends Science Publishers