Resistant starch and hydrothermal treatment of cornmeal: Factors in aflatoxins and fumonisin B1 reduction and bioaccessibility

Abstract The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of a hydrothermal treatment on the residual levels of aflatoxins (G2, G1, B2, B1) and fumonisin B1 in cornmeal, and to investigate the chemical constituents of cornmeal that could affect potential reductions during in vitro digestion. For this purpose, cornmeal (fine and coarse) were spiked with mycotoxins, and then subjected to hydrothermal treatment. Mycotoxin quantification was determined before and after the treatments; while in vitro mycotoxins bioaccessibility was evaluated after the hydrothermal treatments. Treated samples were also characterized based on their macro components and resistant starch. The hydrothermal treatment of mycotoxin-spiked coarse cornmeal resulted in 36–52% reduction of the aflatoxin and 39% of fumonisin B1 levels; while fine cornmeal showed reductions of 0–41% aflatoxin and 59% fumonisin B1 levels. The reduction of the aflatoxins G2, B2 and B1 was significantly correlated (p