Effect of Varying Concentrations of Ethanol and Lime Extracts Pre - treatments on the Aflatoxins and Chemical Quality Characteristics of Stored Irvingia Seeds

In this study the effects of different concentrations of ethanol and lime extracts pre- treatments on the aflatoxins contamination and quality characteristics of stored Irvingia seeds were investigated. The quantity of total aflatoxins produced by Aspergillus flavus((FR33818)) on stored Irvingia seeds was determined using ELISA method. Aspergillus flavus used for this study was identified by ITS rDNA sequence analysis by CABI identification services UK. The results showed that the aflatoxins contaminations and the overall quality characteristics of the Irvingia seeds were influenced by the pre-treatments applied. No aflatoxins were produced at the different concentrations of the ethanol and lime extracts used for the first two month of the storage period. However aflatoxins were produced from the third month but the concentrations in the stored Irvingia seeds decreased with increasing concentrations of the pre-treatments applied except for sample pre-treated with 70% ethanol that recorded no aflatoxins throughout the study period. The pre-treatments applied also significantly improved the chemical qualities of the seeds when compared with the control sample. Thus the finding of this study showed that 70% ethanol and lime extracts concentrations could be used to improve the shelf-life and other quality characteristics of stored Irvingia seeds. Keywords: Aflatoxins, Aspergillus flavus, Ethanol, Lime extracts, Pre-treatment