Stability of fumonisins in thermally processed corn products

Little is known about the stability of fumonisins in corn-based foods during heating, This study investigated the effects of canning, baking, and roasting (dry heating) processes on the stability of fumonisins in artificially contaminated and naturally contaminated corn-based foods. All samples were analyzed for fumonisin levels by both a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and a high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method. Canned whole-kernel corn showed a significant (P less than or equal to 0.05) decrease in fumonisins by both ELISA (15%) and HPLC (11%) analyses. Canned cream-style corn and baked corn bread showed significant (P less than or equal to 0.05) decreases in fumonisin levels at an average rate of 9% and 48%, respectively, as analyzed by ELISA. Corn-muffin mix artificially contaminated with 5 mu g of fumonisin B(1) (FB(1)) per g and naturally contaminated com-muffin mix showed no significant (P less than or equal to 0.05) losses of fumonisins upon baking. Roasting cornmeal samples artificially contaminated with 5 pg of FBI per g and naturally contaminated cornmeal samples at 218 degrees C for 15 min resulted in almost complete loss of fumonisins.