Affiliations: Dipto. di Scienza degli Alimenti, Universita di Napoli Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055, Portici (NA), Italy
Ist. Tossine e M., CNR, Viale Einaudi 51, 70125 Bari, Italy
References: Not available.
Polyclonal antibodies against fusaproliferin
Fusaproliferin (FP), a toxic metabolite of the world-wide maize pathogens Fusarium proliferatum and Fusarium subglutinans, was recently found to be a natural contaminant of maize. Its toxic activity on haematopoietic human cell lines and its teratogenic effects on chicken embryos has been recently proved. Therefore a sensitive, rapid, and inexpensive screening test to detect FP in agricultural commodities is necessary to protect human health. FP-hemiglutarate conjugated to modified bovine serum albumin was synthesized, characterized, and used as an antigen for raising polyclonal antibodies by immunizing rabbits. Indirect and competitive ELISA and immunoblotting analyses were performed to determine antibody specificity towards the mycotoxin. The determination of 10 μg of free FP/mL was achieved using antibodies purified by means of affinity chromatography on a FP- lysine-Sepharose column. This unsatisfactory detection limit is due to high background values; thus, this method is not competitive with traditional UV- HPLC methods.