fumonisin-b1 and Enteritis

In a 196-day feeding trial, 48 male crossbred rabbits (New Zealand × Chinchilla) were randomly assigned and fed varied dietary fumonisin levels of 0.13, 5.0, 7.5 and 10.0 mg fumonisin B(1)/kg diet constituting treatments 1 (control), 2, 3 and 4 respectively. Five animals were randomly selected, stunned and killed per treatment. Relative weight of various visceral organs examined except heart and adrenal gland were significantly (p < 0.05) influenced by the dietary treatments. Liver and spleen weights of rabbits fed 10.0 mg fumonisin per kg were significantly (p < 0.05) lower than those fed control diet and diet 2. Kidney and testes weights were significantly (p < 0.05) lower in rabbits fed control diet and increased with increase in the dietary fumonisin levels. Histological examination of the organs revealed that rabbits fed diets 2, 3 and 4 showed increased severe lesion of approximately 20%, 40% and 60%, respectively, of the total slides examined for each treatment. Forty per cent and 80% of the rabbits fed diets containing 7.5 and 10.0 mg/kg fumonisin, respectively, showed severe necrosis whereas 40%, 60% and 20% of the rabbits fed 5.0, 7.5 and 10.0 mg/kg, respectively, showed mild–moderate liver necrosis/lesions as compared with non-significant lesion observed in the controls. Testicles of rabbits fed diets 3 and 4 showed mild–moderate lesions and sertoli cell degeneration. Tunica mucosa erosion was observed and predominant in the stomach and small intestine of rabbits fed 7.5 and 10.0 mg fumonisin per kg diet. This suggested that fumonisin B(1) above 5.0 mg/kg in rabbit diet is toxic to body organs with potential to induce their hypofunction or total damage.

Topics: Animal Feed; Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Animals; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury; Diet; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Enteritis; Fumonisins; Kidney Diseases; Male; Rabbits; Stomach Diseases; Testicular Diseases

Duodenitis/proximal jejunitis syndrome (DPJ) is a small intestinal disease of horses that is associated with depression and copious gastric reflux. Since an infectious cause for DPJ remains unsubstantiated, these studies were designed to investigate the possible role of Fusarium moniliforme toxins in this disease. Fusarium moniliforme was isolated by culturing 2 samples of feed that had been fed to horses with clinical signs of DPJ. These isolates (AU 2/3) were subsequently grown concurrently on autoclaved corn and their toxicity evaluated in a feeding trial utilizing horses. Isolates of F moniliforme known to be low and high producers (RRC 415 and MRC 826, respectively) of fumonisin B1 (FB1) were cultured individually on corn and each fed separately to other groups of horses. Control horses were fed autoclaved corn that was not inoculated with fungus. Production of FB1 by isolates RRC 415, MRC 826 and AU 2/3 were 19, 4360 and 1455 ppm, respectively. Each group contained 2 horses and the test diets were prepared by diluting culture material with sweet feed and clean corn. The test diets consisted of control corn that contained < 1 ppm FB1, RRC 415 diluted to < 1 ppm FB1, MRC 826 diluted to 200 ppm FB1, and AU 2/3 culture material diluted to contain 65 ppm FB1 on days 1-10 and 130 ppm on days 11-27. Horses fed either MRC 826 or AU 2/3 had elevated serum gamma-glutamyltransferase after 7 to 21 d exposure and elevated serum L-iditol dehydrogenase activity after 7 to 19 d exposure to test diets.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Topics: Animal Feed; Animals; Cyclobutanes; Duodenitis; Enteritis; Fumonisins; Fusarium; Horse Diseases; Horses; Jejunal Diseases; Male; Mycotoxins; Sphingolipids