Mycotoxins are toxic compounds, produced by the secondary metabolism of toxigenic moulds in the Aspergillus, Alternaria, Claviceps, Fusarium, Penicillium and Stachybotrys genera occurring in food and feed commodities both pre- and post-harvest. Adverse human health effects from the consumption of mycotoxins have occurred for many centuries. When ingested, mycotoxins may cause a mycotoxicosis which can result in an acute or chronic disease episode. Chronic conditions have a much greater impact, numerically, on human health in general, and induce diverse and powerful toxic effects in test systems: some are carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic, estrogenic, hemorrhagic, immunotoxic, nephrotoxic, hepatotoxic, dermotoxic and neurotoxic. Although mycotoxin contamination of agricultural products still occurs in the developed world, the application of modern agricultural practices and the presence of a legislatively regulated food processing and marketing system have greatly reduced mycotoxin exposure in these populations. However, in developing countries, where climatic and crop storage conditions are frequently conducive to fungal growth and mycotoxin production, much of the population relies on subsistence farming or on unregulated local markets. Therefore both producers and governmental control authorities are directing their efforts toward the implementation of a correct and reliable evaluation of the real status of contamination of a lot of food commodity and, consequently, of the impact of mycotoxins on human and animal health.

One Health (OH) positions health professionals as agents for change and provides a platform to manage determinants of health that are often not comprehensively captured in medicine or public health alone. However, due to the organisation of societies and disciplines, and the sectoral allocation of resources, the development of transdisciplinary approaches requires effort and perseverance. Therefore, there is a need to provide evidence on the added value of OH for governments, researchers, funding bodies and stakeholders. This paper outlines a conceptual framework of what OH approaches can encompass and the added values they can provide. The framework was developed during a workshop conducted by the “Network for Evaluation of One Health”, an Action funded by the European Cooperation in Science and Technology. By systematically describing the various aspects of OH we provide the basis for measuring and monitoring the integration of disciplines, sectors and stakeholders in health initiatives. The framework identifies the social, economic and environmental drivers leading to integrated approaches to health, and illustrates how these evoke characteristic OH operations, i.e. thinking, planning and working, and require supporting infrastructures to allow learning, sharing and systemic organisation. It also describes the OH outcomes (i.e. sustainability, health and welfare, interspecies equity and stewardship, effectiveness and efficiency), which are not possible to obtain through sectoral approaches alone, and their alignment with aspects of sustainable development based on society, environment and economy.

The objective of the study was to present information about the chemical composition, the fatty acids profile, and cholesterol content of chicken meat in order to investigate the impact of chicken meat consumption on cardiovascular risk in the general population. A total of 48 6-wk-old broiler chickens broilers from two farms in June to November of 2012, and February of 2013, were used in this trial. Total lipid content was determined by extraction of fat by petrol ether (Soxhlet) after acid hydrolysis of samples. Fatty acids were determined by capillary gas chromatography. Cholesterol determination was performed by using HPLC/PDA system. The results indicate that the total free cholesterol content in raw breast and drumstick of chickens was in the range of 37,41–79,9 mg/100 g and 48,35-99,5 mg/100 g, respectively. The main fatty acids identified in all cuts were C18:1c9, C18:2n6, C16:0, C18:0, and C16:1. Decreasing the dietary n-6/n-3 clearly decreased the content in breast and drumstick muscle of C18:2n6, C18:3n3, and C20: 3n6, but increased that of C16:0, C18:0, and C20:2. Also, the major saturated fatty acid (SFA) (C16:0 and C18:0) was significantly differ among the four treatments. Our study shows that dietary fat and fatty acid composition influence the concentrations of total cholesterol content, total fat content, and fatty acid composition in broiler muscle. This information will aid in determining the burden of chicken meat as a cardiovascular risk factors disease and act as a planning tool for public-health Programmes.

Documented cases of mycotoxin occurrence in meat products call for further research into potential contamination sources, especially given an ever more increasing consumption of these nutritionally rich products. These foodstuffs can be contaminated with mycotoxins through three pathways: contaminated spices and other raw materials, mycotoxin-producing moulds present on the surface of dry-cured meat products, and carry-over effect from farm animals exposed to contaminated feed. In order to establish meat products’ mycotoxin contamination more precisely, the concentrations of all mycotoxins of relevance for these products should be determined. This manuscript reviews data on major mycotoxins present in different types of meat products, and discusses the contamination pathways, contamination levels and control & preventative measures.

The aim of this systematic review is to provide information regarding the incidence and levels of aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) in raw and heat processed cow’s milk in Serbia during 2015–16 and to compare these with collected data on the occurrence of AFM₁ in raw milk and dairy products during the last decade in our region. Estimation of dietary exposure (EDI) and hazard index (HI) calculations for different age groups of the population were also carried out, based on the AFM₁ content of milk samples and on available food consumption data in Serbia. AFM₁ was detected in 69.9% (984/1408) of raw milk samples in 2015 versus 84.9% (3094/3646) in 2016, while in heat-processed milk, AFM₁ was detected in 77.8% (364/468) in 2015 versus 98.5% (753/765) in 2016. On the basis of the obtained results, 450 (9%) of raw and 14 (1.1%) of heat-processed milk samples were contaminated with AFM₁ levels above the maximum permitted level in Serbia (0.25 μg kg⁻¹). However, a large percentage of raw and heat processed milk in Serbia (30.1% and 17.3%, respectively) was contaminated with AFM₁ levels above the maximum permitted level regulated in the European Union (0.05 μg kg⁻¹). Therefore, in order to protect consumer health, it is extremely important to further control the level of aflatoxins in milk, and this should be considered as a high priority for risk management actions.