Determination of deoxynivalenol in wheat-based breakfast cereals marketed in Portugal

Deoxynivalenol (DON), also known as vomitoxin, is one of a group of closely related secondary fungal metabolites - the trichothecenes - and is produced predominantly by several species of the genus Fusarium, especially Fusarium graminearum. The present study was carried out to evaluate the natural occurrence of DON in different kinds of wheat-based breakfast cereals widely consumed by the population. A total of 88 commercially available samples of wheat-based breakfast cereals were randomly collected from different supermarkets in Lisbon, Portugal. The samples were analyzed using immunoaffinity column, and DON was quantified by liquid chromatography. Detection limit was 100 mug/kg. Average recovery of DON was 80%. Of 88 analyzed samples, 72.8% contained levels of DON between 103 and 6,040 mug/kg, with mean level of 754 mug/kg, and 24 samples (27.2%) were not contaminated (< 100 mug/kg). These results indicate an incidence of this mycotoxin in these products, and the authors suggest a monitoring for the prevention of molds and mycotoxins. This is the first report in Portugal on natural contamination with DON in wheat-based breakfast cereals.