[Toxic activity of Penicillium citrinum metabolites on Mus musculus mice]

The aims of this work were to study the influence of secondary metabolites produced by a Penicillium citrinum strain. Mus musculus mice were fed with a diet containing those metabolites to determine both its influence on their development and the pathological and biochemical changes on experimental animals. Male and female including pregnant females, were studied. One group received commercial feed (A.B.) to which the citrinin- producing mould had been added (LF), another received A.B. contaminated with commercial citrinin (LC). The last group received noncontaminated feed (LT). The animals were weighed weekly, and sacrificed after sixty days, so that they could be studied both macro and microscopically. In LF and LT mice, haematological analysis was carried out and hemosiderin was looked for in urine. The diet of the newborne mice, after weaning, was identical to that of their parent. The treated animals (LF and LC) showed morphological alterations, a significant decrease in weight and morphologic alterations and hemosiderin granules were detected in some of their organs. In LT all breeds survived, none of the mice showed neither macro nor microscopic anomalies and had normal biochemical parameters. Fewer breeds in LF survived, male infertility was detected and some of their haematologic parameters were also measurably lower.