Further data on the levels of emerging Fusarium mycotoxins in cereals collected from Tianjin, China

Abstract

A number of 344 samples were collected from Tianjin, China and were analysed for the occurrence of emerging Fusarium mycotoxins including enniatin A (ENN A), enniatin A₁ (ENN A₁), enniatin B (ENN B), enniatin B₁ (ENN B₁) and beauvericin (BEA) by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). The frequencies of mycotoxins studied were 69.0% (40/58), 69.8% (37/53), 85.9% (67/78), 78.9% (75/95), and 30.0% (18/60) for rice, wheat, corn, wheat flour, and corn flour, respectively. BEA was the predominant toxin in rice (average = 37.2 μg/kg) and wheat (average = 58.4 μg/kg), followed by ENN B and ENN B₁, while less ENN A and ENN A₁ were detected. ENN A was most common in corns with an average level of 28.1 μg/kg, while BEA had a higher average of 62.8 μg/kg. The levels of ENNs and BEA significantly decreased in wheat flours and corn flours, presumably due to the production process. The co-occurrences of ENNs and BEA in cereal samples were common in the combination of two and three mycotoxins and the significant positive correlations in concentrations were also obtained among them. Besides, agroclimate was considered as an important factor for Fusarium production and the mycotoxin contamination was found more serious in Jizhou district, which had more rainfall and less sunshine, than the other agriculture regions. These results suggested the necessity of carrying out in-depth and large-scale monitoring of mycotoxins in cereals and their products nationwide.