Emerging technologies in combination with probiotics for aflatoxins removal: an updated review

Summary Aflatoxins are known for their high toxicity, and their presence in food is associated with a high health risk. The levels were set for aflatoxin in different foodstuffs to protect public health. Various chemical, physical, and biological methods have been reported for decontamination and detoxifying aflatoxins. Among biological methods, probiotics have an important role in the decontamination of aflatoxins. At the same time, some emerging food processing technologies showed promising results in aflatoxin degradation. This article reviewed significant studies of the last four years that investigated the effects of probiotics on the degradation rate of aflatoxins. Discussions on the possible contribution of emerging technologies along with probiotics are also provided. The results showed that the bioavailability of aflatoxins was reduced by adsorption or binding to probiotics’ cell walls, which increased their excretion rate. Besides, the amount of aflatoxin absorbed by probiotics depends on several parameters, including the complexity of the food matrix. Therefore, probiotics can be used as an effective method to reduce the absorption of aflatoxins in combination with other methods.