Effect of Storage Time and Concentration of Aflatoxin M1 on Toxin Binding Capacity of L. acidophilus in Fermented milk Product

Aflatoxins are potent carcinogenic and immunosuppressive agents. Acute exposure to high level of aflatoxins leads to aflatoxicosis, which cause rapid death due to liver failure. Immune modulating effects of probiotic bacteria have good prospects to detoxification of natural foods. This study was aimed to investigate the ability of Lactobacillus acidophilus strainLA5 in the presence and absence of yoghurt starter culture for removing Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) in comparison with yoghurt starter cultures (10^8 CFU ml^-1). AFM1 detoxification was evaluated for 21 days of yoghurt storage at 4°C at different concentrations of Aflatoxin (0.1, 0.5 and 0.75 µg L^-1). The amounts of unbound AFM1 were determined using competitive EnzymeLinked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). L. acidophilus combined with yoghurt starter culture and alone could significantly (P≤ 0.05) remove AFM1 compared to control group. The results indicated that increasing initial AFM1 concentration in the yoghurt samples and storage time affected the capacity of AFM1 binding.