Inhibition of Aspergillus flf lflavus Growth and Af lflatoxin Reduction by Active Compound in Garlic

Abstract

Aflatoxins are toxic metabolites produced by Aspergillus flavus which are highly toxic compounds and can cause liver cancer and impaired immune function. These toxins can be found in a wide range of food commodities especially in groundnut, dry chilli and chilli powder. This research was to focus on the effect of garlic juice on preventing and reducing aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in chilli powder. The results showed that garlic juice at higher concentrations of 2.5 and 5.0% completely inhibited spore germination and repressed the growth of A. flavus, respectively. Afterward, garlic juice at different concentrations was applied to chilli powder to detoxify AFB1 contamination. The juice at 100 and 75% could reduce the AFB1 content in chilli powder by 73.67 and 69.71%, respectively. The results indicate that garlic juice can decrease A. flavus growth and reduce the production and amount of AFB1 in vitro and in vivo. Allicin was TLC detected as a major compound in juice, powder and extracts of garlic in this study with Rf value of 0.812 the same as allicin standard.