Removal of Mycotoxins in Food by Emerging Porous Materials: Advances, Mechanisms and Prospects

Mycotoxins are toxic secondary metabolites produced by various toxigenic fungi and are widely present in food and agricultural products, posing serious threats to food safety and human health. Effective removal of mycotoxin contamination from food remains a critical challenge in ensuring food security. Emerging porous materials (PMs) have recently gained significant attention in mycotoxin removal due to their unique properties. Encouraging progress has been developed during the past five years in the removal of mycotoxins using PMs. However, there is no critical review on the removal of mycotoxins from food by emerging PMs, especially the removal performance and mechanism. Herein, this comprehensive review summarizes recent research on the removal of prevalent mycotoxins, such as aflatoxins, patulin, and ochratoxin A, from food using emerging PMs, including metal-organic frameworks and their derivatives, biochar, and covalent organic frameworks. Additionally, this review highlights the mechanisms underlying two primary removal methods, adsorption and degradation, along with the possible degradation pathways and products of mycotoxins. Given the requirement of safety and regulatory consideration, the risk assessment of PM-based removal method is also discussed. Finally, specific challenges and prospects associated with the industrial application of PMs for mycotoxin removal are explored. This review provides a valuable reference for advancing mycotoxin removal technologies from food, which is of great significance for ensuring food safety and human health.