[Applications of molecular biology techniques for the control of aflatoxin contamination]

Aflatoxins are mycotoxins produced by species of Aspergillus flavus group. These toxins have received increased attention from the food industry and the general public because they shown a high toxicity against humans and animal. Different methods are applying to control the aflatoxin contamination. But these conventional methods do not seem to resolve the problem. So, new methods using techniques in biotechnology are now being developed: a) Inhibit the biosynthetic and secretory process responsible for aflatoxin contamination. b) Using biocompetitive agents that replace aflatoxigenic strains with non aflatoxigenic strains in the field. c) Using genetic engineering techniques to incorporate antifungal genes into specific plant species.