The most potent mycotoxin, aflatoxins are the secondary metabolite produced by fungi, especially Aspergillus, and have been found to be ubiquitous, contaminating cereals, crops, and even milk and causing major health and economic issues in some countries due to poor storage, substandard management, and lack of awareness. Different aspects of the toxin are reviewed here, including its structural biochemistry, occurrence, factors conducive to its contamination and intoxication and related clinical features, as well as suggested preventive and control strategies and detection methods.

The intestinal epithelial barrier can prevent the invasion of pathogenic microorganisms and food antigens to maintain a consistent intestinal homeostasis. However, an imbalance in this barrier can result in various diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, malnutrition, and metabolic disease. Thus, the aim of this study was to select probiotic strains with epithelial barrier-enhancing ability in cell-based model and further investigate them for their improving effects on colitis mouse and weaned piglet models. The results showed that selected specific cell-free fermentation supernatants (CFSs) from Ligilactobacillus salivarius P1, Lactobacillus gasseri P12, and Limosilactobacillus reuteri G7 promoted intestinal epithelial cell growth and proliferation, strengthening the intestinal barrier in an intestinal epithelial cell line Caco-2 model. Further, the administration of CFSs of L. salivarius P1, L. gasseri P12, and L. reuteri G7 were found to ameliorate DSS-induced colitis in mice. Additionally, spray-dried powders of CFS from the three strains were examined in a weaned piglet model, only CFS powder of L. reuteri G7 could ameliorate the feed/gain ratio and serum levels of D-lactate and endotoxin. In conclusion, a new potential probiotic strain, L. reuteri G7, was selected and showed ameliorating effects in both colitis mouse and weaned piglet models.

This study evaluated the immunomodulatory activity of live Lacticaseibacillus paracasei Yb in vitro and compared response patterns associated with practical L. paracasei Yb formulation formats in an ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic airway inflammation mouse model. In vitro, live L. paracasei Yb increased TNF-α production in RAW 264.7 macrophages at 2 × 10⁶ to 5 × 10⁷ CFU/mL, increased IL-1β only at 5 × 10⁷ CFU/mL, and increased IL-10 at 1 × 10⁷ and 5 × 10⁷ CFU/mL. In splenocytes, L. paracasei Yb increased TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-10 compared with untreated controls, although these responses did not show a simple concentration-dependent pattern. In vivo, BALB/c mice received fresh L. paracasei Yb yogurt (YG), freeze-dried yogurt (YG-FD), or bacterial powder (BP) for 53 days. Compared with the OVA-sensitized Negative control group, YG and BP did not significantly reduce serum total IgE or OVA-specific IgE, and airway responsiveness and BALF eosinophils showed limited or non-significant changes. In contrast, YG and BP significantly reduced lung inflammation scores (Negative control, 6.86 ± 1.57; YG, 5.13 ± 0.83; BP, 4.50 ± 0.55) and ConA-stimulated splenocyte IL-4 secretion (Negative control, 1168.43 ± 553.34 pg/mL; YG, 589.84 ± 233.54 pg/mL; BP, 472.28 ± 186.44 pg/mL). These findings suggest that practical formulation conditions may shape selected preclinical immunological and histopathological responses to L. paracasei Yb. Further studies incorporating CFU-matched dosing, probiotic-free yogurt controls, and mechanistic validation are required before clinical relevance in asthma can be inferred.