Fumonisins – Underestimated but controllable by biotransformation

Fumonisins are frequently occurring mycotoxins with great relevance in animal feed. An effective way to counteract them is through biodegradation by natural metabolic pathways, a process called biotransformation. In contrast to adsorption of mycotoxins by clays, microbial and/or enzymatic biotransformation is highly specific and irreversible. By Verena Starkl and Karin Nährer, Biomin, Austria In 1989, the US corn crop was highly contaminated by fumonisins resulting in large outbrea