Aspergillus flavus produce secondary metabolites called aflatoxins, which are considered the most toxic mycotoxins. Aflatoxins directly and indirectly affect human and animal health and have a major economic impact. As A. flavus grow also on fermented meat products, the aim of this study was to assess the impact of the conditions that are typical for production of dry salami on mould growth and aflatoxin B1 formation. The influence of time (7, 14, 21 days), temperature (10 °C, 15 °C, 25 °C), aw (0.98, 0.99, 0.95), pH (6.7, 6.3, 5.4), medium composition and the addition of spent medium after growth of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), namely Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, were monitored. Mould growth was determined by measuring the diameter of the colonies and AFB1 production was monitored by UPLC-MS/MS chromatography. We found that time had a significant effect on mould growth and AFB1 production, as both parameters increased linearly with time. The optimum temperature for mould growth and AFB1 production was 25 °C. The optimum aw for growth was 0.98 and for AFB1 production was 0.95, where after 21 days of incubation at 25 °C on YES9554 (Yeast extract with sucrose, aw 0.95, pH 5.4) medium the maximum AFB1 concentration was 116.84 g/g, followed by YES9563 (aw 0.95, pH 6.3) medium with 110.87 g/g AFB1. The pH had the lowest effect on mould growth and AFB1 production among all the parameters investigated. We also found out that the composition of the medium had a significant effect on mould growth, and even more on AFB1 production, as we detected up to 95 % lower AFB1 concentrations in CMGY (cooked meat agar with glucose and yeast extract) media compared to YES media. The 10 % addition of spent LAB medium reduced AFB1 production. The results of the study show the complexity of the effects of environmental conditions on A. flavus growth and formation of AFB1 in conditions typical for production of dry salami and indicate some parameters (temperature, aw, addition of spent MKB medium) that can be used to reduce the potential for AFB1 formation in these products.
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