Patulin

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ENV-020405",
  "term": "Patulin",
  "field": "Environment",
  "definition": "Patulin is a mycotoxin that is produced by certain species of Penicillium, Aspergillus and Byssochylamys molds that may grow on a variety of foods including fruit, grains, and cheese. Patulin has been found to occur in a number of foods including apple juice, apples and pears with brown rot (Harwig et al. 1973, Brain et al. 1956), flour (Hasseltine and Graves, 1966), and malt feed (Ukai et al. 1954). However, given the nature of the food, the manufacturing processes, or consumption practices for many foods, patulin does not appear to pose a safety concern, with the exception of apple juice (Fritz, 1981). For instance, the rotten portions of most fruits and grains typically are removed prior to consumption. In foods such as cheese, the high cysteine content of the food interacts with patulin to render it inactive (Ciegler et al., 1977). Patulin is reported to be destroyed by fermentation and thus is not found in either alcoholic fruit beverages or vinegars produced from fruit juices. Thermal processing appears to cause only moderate reductions in patulin levels, thus patulin present in apple juice will survive the pasteurization processes (IARC 1986, WHO 1990, Harrison 1989, McKinley and Carlton, 1991).",
  "references": [
    "FDA Protecting and Promoting Your Health at http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/FoodContaminantsAdulteration/NaturalToxins/ucm212520.htm"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/environment/patulin/"
}