Alcoholic beverages can be contaminated with mycotoxins. Ochratoxin A (OTA) is the most frequently detected mycotoxinin wine and is produced by several species of Aspergillus. This mycotoxin is nephrotoxic and carcinogenic. In beer, the most commonly identified mycotoxin is deoxynivalenol (DON). Ingestion of food contaminated with DON has been associated with adverse gastrointestinal effects. Despite the harmful effects of mycotoxins on health, there are no regulations regarding their limits in alcoholic beverages in Paraguay. Here we determine the presence of OTA and DON in wine and beer, respectively. Four commercial brands of wine and twenty-nine brands of craft and industrial beerwere tested by the Agra quant ELISA method. One brand of wine was positive for OTA and seven brands of beer (one of them craft) were positive for DON. The values found for both toxins are below the recommended maximum intake proposed by international standards. Giving the high consumption of these products in the country, regulations and monitoring systems mustbe established to check the maximum levels of mycotoxins allowed in alcoholic beverages.

As a continuation of the study of the biologically active compounds of native neotropical Ganoderma species in Paraguay, the content of total phenolic compounds, total antioxidants and percentage of antioxidant activity of the fractions extracted with ethanol, hexane, diethyl ether, ethyl acetate and water of mycelium in liquid medium, wild and cultivated fruiting bodies of G. tuberculosum, were analyzed. Biologically active compounds were highest in the diethyl ether fractions of wild fruiting bodies, 126.49 ± 4.19 mg. (GAE) g-1 (milligrams of Gallic acid equivalent per grams of crude extract), antioxidant compounds content of 130.94 ± 5.302 mg .g-1 AAE (milligrams of Ascorbic acid equivalent per grams of crude extract) and activity percentage of 70.93% compared to 67.39 ± 1.5 mg. (GAE) g-1, 48.37 ± 0.73.g-1 AAE and 45.63% antioxidant activity. According to the values obtained in the present study, the fruiting body of Ganoderma tuberculosum is a promising source of antioxidant compounds for the food industry.

El Schinus weinmanniifolia (Molle’i) es una de las plantas empleadas en forma de infusión de las hojas para tratar amigdalitis, dolores de garganta, tos e inflamaciones de la encía. Para tratar de establecer una relación entre los metabolitos secundarios presentes y sus actividades biológicas se determinó el Perfil Fitoquímico Cualitativo del extracto crudo, Compuestos fenólicos totales, Flavonoides Totales así como Actividad Antioxidante, Actividad Hemolítica y DL50 en Drosophila melanogaster. Los resultados revelaron la presencia de Taninos hidrolizables, saponinas y esteroles. En los bioensayos se observó elevada Actividad de Antioxidantes (IC=39,9%) y una actividad antimicrobiana del extracto bruto etanólico frente a cepas de E. coli, S. typhimurium, E. faecalis, P. aeruginosa, C. albicans. Se estableció una DL50 de 15,3 mg.mL en Drosophyla melanogaster y además una actividad hemolítica de IC50 de 179 µg.mL con una actividad del 55,9 %. Estos valores representaron un primer aporte a fin de determinar científicamente su actividad biológica y correlacionar con el contenido de moléculas.

Zea mays var. amylacea and Zea mays var. indurata are maize ecotypes from Paraguay. Aspergillus section Flavi is the main spoilage fungus of maize under storage conditions. Due to its large intraspecific genetic variability, the accurate identification of this fungal taxonomic group is difficult. In the present study, potential mycotoxigenic strains of Aspergillus section Flavi isolated from Z. mays var. indurata and Z. mays var. amylacea that are marketed in the metropolitan region of Asunción were identified by a polyphasic approach. Based on morphological characters, 211 isolates were confirmed to belong to Aspergillus section Flavi. A subset of 92 strains was identified as Aspergillus flavus by mass spectrometry MALDI-TOF and the strains were classified by MALDI-TOF MS into chemotypes based on their aflatoxins and cyclopiazonic acid production. According to the partial sequencing of ITS and CaM genes, a representative subset of 38 A. flavus strains was confirmed. Overall, 75 A. flavus strains (86%) were characterized as producers of aflatoxins. The co-occurrence of at least two mycotoxins (AF/ZEA, FUM/ZEA, and AF/ZEA/FUM) was detected for five of the Z. mays samples (63%). Considering the high mycological bioburden and mycotoxin contamination, maize marketed in the metropolitan region of Asunción constitutes a potential risk to food safety and public health and requires control measures.

The presence of AFM 1 in milk is a public health concern, since milk is a significant part of human diets across nations. In economies where monitoring is low or non-existent, the possibility of contamination with AFM 1 might be increased. Our study aimed to detect and quantify the concentration of AFM 1 in fluid milk and milk drink of different brands, fat contents, packages and, heat treatments sold in the Metropolitan Area of Asunción. 80 samples were collected following a non-probability sampling method; acquired from supermarkets from the Metropolitan Area of Asunción. To quantify AFM 1 , the AgraQuant® ELISA Aflatoxin M 1 25 - 500 ppt was used. Non-parametric analysis was performed. All samples presented positive values for the detection limit (25 ng/kg); 85% of the samples showed values between 30 to 50 ng/kg, and 15% showed values over 500 ng/kg. There was no significant difference in the content of AFM 1 between fat contents, heat treatments, or types of packaging. However, brands differed significantly.

Introducción: La aflatoxina M1 (AFM1) es un metabolito tóxico derivado de la aflatoxina B. Su ingestión en lactantes se ha relacionado con retraso en el crecimiento, aumento de susceptibilidad a enfermedades infecciosas, reducción de la eficiencia en la inmunización y cirrosis. En Paraguay se recomienda lactancia exclusiva hasta los 6 meses, sin embargo se comercializan diferentes marcas de fórmulas infantiles dirigidas a lactantes menores de 6 meses. Objetivo: Detectar y cuantificar la presencia de AFM1 en fórmulas para lactantes comercializadas en el Área Metropolitana. Materiales y Métodos: Se adquirieron fórmulas fluidas (n=18) y en polvo (n=91) para lactantes de 0 a 12 meses de farmacias y supermercados del Área Metropolitana de Asunción y fueron analizados mediante el ensayo de inmunoafinidad ligado a enzimas (ELISA). Resultados: 9,75% (0 a 6 meses) y 2% (6 a 12 meses) de las fórmulas lácteas en polvo y 100% de las fórmulas fluidas resultaron positivas para AFM1. La mediana de contenido de AFM1 en formulas en polvo fue de 1820 ng/kg y 510 ng/kg en las marcas A y B. En las fórmulas líquidas fue de 31,8 ng/kg y 33,6 ng/kg para las dos marcas analizadas respectivamente, p=0,0001. Conclusiones: Se detectó AFM1 en todas las fórmulas líquidas analizadas, y en el 2 y 9,7% de las fórmulas en polvo de las marcas Ay B respectivamente Los niveles de AFM1 fueron mayores en las fórmulas en polvo. Conflicto de interés: Los autores declaran no poseer conflicto de interés Recibido: 16/11/2020 Aceptado: 12/02/2021