Biomedical subjects

Winston M Hagler

Publications and source records attributed to Winston M Hagler.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Effect of fermentation on Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) toxicity in mice.

Unfortunate bovine fatalities occurring after ingestion of mold-damaged sweetpotatoes preclude the use of the culled tubers in livestock feed. In cattle, mold-damaged sweetpotatoes induce an acute respiratory distress syndrome resulting in asphyxiation. Because of this potential toxicity and the general abundance of culled sweetpotatoes, the detoxification efficacy of ensiling was explored since it is an easy and economically viable technique often applied to preserve livestock feed. Sweetpotato slices with or without mold damage were stored either frozen (to represent unfermented samples) or fermented for 6 weeks at room temperature. Following fermentation, organic extracts were generated for administration to mice. Thirty hours following administration of the extracts, mice were evaluated for gross and microscopic lesions affecting the lungs, liver, and kidneys. Fermentation of 6 weeks duration was observed to inadequately eliminate the lung, liver, and kidney toxicity caused by mold-damaged sweetpotatoes. In fact, fermentation exacerbated the hepatotoxicity of mold-damaged sweetpotatoes. This is also the first demonstration that sweetpotato regions lacking visible mold damage can induce lung and kidney injury, which, however, is preventable by fermentation.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Aflatoxin binders II: reduction of aflatoxin M1 in milk by sequestering agents of cows consuming aflatoxin in feed.

Sequestering agents bind dietary aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and reduce absorption from an animal's gastrointestinal tract. As a result, they protect an animal from the toxic effects of AFB1 and reduce transfer of the metabolite, aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), into milk. Three experiments, using late-lactation Holstein cows fed AFB1-contaminated feed, were conducted to evaluate several potential sequestering agents for their abilities to prevent or reduce the transmission of AFM1 into milk. Six agents previously tested in our laboratory for AFB1 binding in vitro were evaluated in these experiments. These were: SA-20, an activated carbon (AC-A); Astra-Ben-20, a sodium bentonite (AB-20); MTB-100, an esterified glucomannan (MTB-100); Red Crown, a calcium bentonite (RC); Flow Guard, a sodium bentonite (FG); and Mycrosorb, a sodium bentonite (MS). Five of the six sequestering agents significantly (P < 0.01) reduced AFM1 contamination of milk (AB-20, 61%; FG, 65%; MS, 50%; MTB-100, 59%; and RC, 31%); whereas, AC-A, activated carbon, had no effect on AFM1 transmission at 0.25% of feed. By the first milking (1 day after cows consumed contaminated feed), AFM1 appeared in milk, then reached maximum levels after three days, and was absent from milk within four days after AFB1 was removed from the feed. Sodium bentonites at 1.2% of feed showed good potential as AFB1 binders; MTB-100, a yeast cell wall product, was equally effective at 0.05% in feed. Potential AFB1 binding agents should be evaluated experimentally to demonstrate efficacy. Our data show that sequestering agents can reduce AFM1 in milk of cows fed AFB1-contaminated feed.

Aflatoxin B1↗

PubMed2002

Sampling wheat for deoxynivalenol.

The variability associated with testing wheat for deoxynivalenol (DON) was measured using a 0.454 kg sample, a Romer mill, 25 g of comminuted subsample and the Romer Fluoroquant analytical method. The total variability was partitioned into sampling, sample preparation, and analytical variability components. Each variance component was found to be a function of the DON concentration and equations were developed to predict each variance component using regression techniques. The effects of sample size, subsample size, and number of aliquots on reducing the variability of the DON test procedure were also determined. Using the test procedure described above, the coefficient of variation (CV) associated with testing wheat at 5 ppm DON was found to be 13.4%. The CVs associated with sampling, sample preparation, and analysis were 6.3, 10.0, and 6.3%, respectively. The sample variations associated with testing wheat are relatively small when compared to CVs associated with testing other commodities for other mycotoxins such as aflatoxin in peanuts. Even with the use of a small sample size (0.454 kg), the sampling variation was not the largest source of error as found in other mycotoxin test procedures.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2002

Aflatoxin binders I: in vitro binding assay for aflatoxin B1 by several potential sequestering agents.

Nine potential proprietary sequestering agents consisting of 4 activated charcoals, 3 sodium bentonites, a calcium bentonite, and an esterified glucomannan were compared in a novel in vitro assay for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) binding. Agents were evaluated in 10% methanol prepared as 1% stirred suspensions at pH 3, 7, 10 and pH-unadjusted, with or without AFB1 at 5 microg/ml. All nine agents bound more than 95% of the 5 microg of AFB1 in solution, regardless of pH. The sodium bentonites bound 98, 95, and 98% of the AFB1. The four activated charcoals bound over 99%, the calcium bentonite bound 98%, and the esterified glucomannan bound 97% of the AFB1 in solution. The results suggested that the sequestering agents tested here had sufficient potential to bind AFB1 at pH values commonly found in the gastrointestinal tracts of ruminants and other animals.

Aflatoxin B1↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Predicting aflatoxin and fumonisin in shelled corn lots using poor-quality grade components.

A study was conducted to determine if aflatoxin and fumonisin are concentrated in the poor-quality grade components of shelled corn. Four 1.0 kg test samples were each taken from 23 lots of shelled corn marketed in North Carolina. Inspectors from the Federal Grain Inspection Service divided each test sample into 3 grade components: (1) damaged kernels (DM), (2) broken corn and foreign material (BCFM), and )3) whole kernels (WH). The aflatoxin and fumonisin concentration was measured in each component and a mass balance equation was used to calculate the total concentration of each mycotoxin in each test sample. Averaged across all test samples, the aflatoxin concentrations in the DM, BCFM, and WH components were 1300.3, 455.2, and 37.3 ppb, respectively. Averaged across all test samples, the fumonisin concentrations in the DM, BCFM, and WH components were 148.3, 51.3, and 1.8 ppm, respectively. The DM and BCFM components combined accounted for only 5.0% of the test sample mass, but accounted for 59.8 and 77.5% of the total aflatoxin and fumonisin mass in the test sample, respectively. Both aflatoxin mass (ng) and aflatoxin concentration (ng/g) in the combined DM and BCFM components had high correlations with aflatoxin concentration in the lot. The highest correlation occurred when aflatoxin mass (ng) in the combined DM and BCFM components was related to aflatoxin concentration in the lot (0.964). Similar results were obtained for fumonisin. This study indicated that measuring either aflatoxin or fumonisin in the combined DM and BCFM grade components could be used as a screening method to predict either aflatoxin or fumonisin in a bulk lot of shelled corn.

Aflatoxins↗