Zearalenone is an endocrine disruptor with estrogenic activity, produced primarily by
Fusariumgraminearum, a common cause of corn ear rot and
Fusarium head blight or scab in wheat.Zearalenone can be a contaminant of both corn and wheat and may survive thermal food processes.This study was done to determine the heat stability of zearalenone. Reduction of zearalenone wasmeasured during heating at different temperatures (100, 125, 150, 175, 200, and 225
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C) in anaqueous buffer solution at different pH values. The rate and extent of zearalenone reduction increasedwith processing temperature. Less than 23% of zearalenone was lost when heated to
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125
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Cwhereas 34-68% was lost at 150
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C after 60 min, depending on the pH of the buffer. Greater than92% of zearalenone was lost after 60 min when heated to
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175
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C, and complete reduction ofzearalenone was observed in less than 30 min at 225
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C, regardless of pH. Overall, zearalenonewas most stable at pH 7 followed by that at pH 4 and 10, and the greatest losses occurred above175
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C.Keywords: Zearalenone; reduction; heat processing; pH; kinetics