Zearalenone and Its Derivatives α-Zearalenol and β-Zearalenol Decontamination by Saccharomyces cerevisiae Strains Isolated from Bovine Forage

Zearalenone (ZEA) and its derivatives are mycotoxins with estrogenic effects on mammals. The biotransformation for ZEA in animals involves the formation of two major metabolites, α- and β-zearalenol (α-ZOL and β-ZOL), which are subsequently conjugated with glucuronic acid. The capability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains isolated from silage to eliminate ZEA and its derivatives α-ZOL and β-ZOL was investigated as, also, the mechanisms involved. Strains were grown on Yeast Extract-Peptone-Dextrose medium supplemented with the mycotoxins and their elimination from medium was quantified over time by HPLC-FL. A significant effect on the concentration of ZEA was observed, as all the tested strains were able to eliminate more than 90% of the mycotoxin from the culture medium in two days. The observed elimination was mainly due to ZEA biotransformation into β-ZOL (53%) and α-ZOL (8%) rather than to its adsorption to yeast cells walls. Further, the biotransformation of α-ZOL was not observed but a small amount of β-ZOL (6%) disappeared from culture medium. ZEA biotransformation by yeasts may not be regarded as a full detoxification process because both main end-products are still estrogenic. Nonetheless, it was observed that the biotransformation favors the formation of β-ZOL which is less estrogenic than ZEA and α-ZOL. This metabolic effect is only possible if active strains are used as feed additives and may play a role in the detoxification performance of products with viable S. cerevisiae cells.