Fungi and aflatoxins associated with wheat grains in Gaza governorates

Cereal and its products are susceptible to mold damage during pre-and post-harvesting stages of the production. This study was carried out to determine the extent of fungal contamination and the aflatoxins AFB1, AFB2, AFG1, AFG2 levels of fifty wheat grain samples were collected randomly from different markets in the five Gaza governorates. The obtained results indicated that the most common molds isolated from different wheat grain samples were Aspergillus flavus 84%, Aspergillus parasiticus 72%, Fusarium oxysporum 64%, Aspergillus niger 48%, Alternaria alternate 36%, Penicillium 22%, Aspergillus ochraceus 20% and Aspergillus versicolor 4%. Forty one wheat grain samples which represented (82%) were contaminated with aflatoxins. Considering the high incidence of contamination by AFB1 (80%) in Gaza city and 70% in both Khan Younis and Mid Zone governorates. The level of total aflatoxin AFs in North Gaza, Rafah, Khan Younis, Mid Zone, Gaza City were 8.62, 6.361, 4.187, 3.134 and 2.33 (ng/g), respectively. These levels of AFs are higher than the standard levels in North Gaza, Rafah and Khan Younis. The highest amount of aflatoxin B1 were found in Mid Zone and North Gaza and their aflatoxins contamination were 2.51 and 2.31 ng/g, respectively.