You Don't Have To Be NK cell Dependent To Get Stung
tubigensis, A. niger, and A. awamori) were frequent contaminants. A. niger and A. awamori comprised 27% of all mold strains recovered. Seventy-two percent of these strains produced FB2 on CY20S agar, and 19% produced OTA. Kenjo et al22 reported the presence of Aspergillus sections Nigri and Flavi (A. niger, A. flavus, A. nomius, A. parasiticus, and A. parvisclerotigenus) as well as Penicillium, Cladosporium, and Rhizopus spp. in commercial almond powder. Total fungal counts ranged between NK cell 1100 tree nut samples (including almonds, pistachios, walnuts, and Brazil selleck kinase inhibitor nuts) without visible insect damage, also reported that the most common molds in these commodities were Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Rhizopus. Harvest and postharvest practices seemed to affect the nut mycoflora. Rodrigues et al6 tested almonds for the presence of Aspergillus section Flavi molds. These investigators reported that A. parasiticus was the most frequent, comprising 56% of the isolates, followed by A. flavus (36% of isolates) and Aspergillus tamarii (8% of isolates). Twenty-eight percent of A. flavus strains produced AFBs, while 100% of A. parasiticus isolates elaborated AFBs and AFGs. Our study revealed the presence of the potentially toxigenic molds A. niger, A. flavus, Penicillium spp. and P. polonicum in pine nuts at levels higher than 3.00 log10 CFU g?1. Fungal contamination of pine nuts has also been reported in past studies. Weidenborner23 determined that the dominant fungal contaminants of pine nuts were Cladosporium (37% of the isolates) followed by Phoma (19% of the isolates), and that 16 of the 31 isolated species (including Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus versicolor, A. niger, Eurotium chevalieri, Penicillium aurantiogriseum, Proteases inhibitor P. viridicatum, P. citrinum, P. crustosum, P. puberulum, P. expansum, P. glabrum, and Trichothecium roseum) were potentially toxigenic. Marin et al,24 on the other hand, reported the presence of Fusarium proliferatum in pine nuts. Fifty-four percent of the F. proliferatum strains isolated by these investigators produced fumonisin B1 (FB1) in shelled pine nuts, while 18% elaborated the same toxin in whole pine nuts in a laboratory study. During our study, no live fusaria were found in this commodity. According to the results of our study, the most frequent molds found in walnuts were penicillia (including P. brevicompactum, P. crustosum P. solitum, P. glabrum, and P. hispanicum), A. tubingensis, A. niger, and A. flavus. Fusarium spp. were isolated from only 3 out of 20 samples. Past research on fungal contamination of walnuts has shown similar microfungi profiles. Abdel-Hafez and Saber9 reported that A. flavus, A. niger, A. fumigatus, Cladosporium spp., Penicillium chrysogenum, and P.