Abstract
A mycological profile was analyzed on a total of 38 samples of commercial job's tears (Coix lachryma-jobi L. var. frumentacea Makino) and its products.The samples were composed of 25 batches of untreated grains, 9 of flour and 4 of heat treated grains. Fungal counts of untreated grains, flour and treated grains were 3-65/g (average 24/g), 31-2, 040/g (av. 112/g) and 3-41/g (av. 17/g), respectively. Among the total isolates (3, 278) from all samples, the predominant genus was Aspergillus (45.9%). Of the Aspergillus isolates, 802 (24.5% of the total isolates) were identified as the A. glaucus group (teleomorph: Eurotium).
Mycotoxin-producing strains of A. flavus, A. versicolor and Penicillium citrinum were isolated from 7 samples (one batch of untreated grains and 6 of flour), 3 (one of untreated grains and 2 of flour) and 2 (flour) samples, respectively.
As a result of inoculation tests with aflatoxin-producing A. flavus, sterigmatocystin-producing A. versicolor, ochratoxin-producing A. ochraceus, citrinin-producing P. citrinum, deoxynivalenol-producing Fusarium culmorum and zearalenone-producing F. graminearum, if job's tears is shown to be one of favorable substrates for the production of these mycotoxins.
