Table 1.

Mode of action, advantages, and disadvantage of aflatoxin decontamination techniques.

Method	Mode of action	Advantages	Disadvantages
Adsorbents	Adsorption	Low level of inclusion; active in the intestinal tract of animals and in feed; functionalization allows the binding towards different toxins.	Unspecific binding of nutrients, medicinal drugs, vitamins etc.
Microorganisms	Adsorption and biotransformation	Work through two modes of action; Multistep processes may be performed; multimycotoxin activity is possible; Inexpensive.	Impact on food matrix may be relevant; production of multiple (undesired) metabolites; not applicable to all matrices.
Enzymes	Biotransformation	Minor impact on food matrix; Specific; multistep processes may not be performed by single enzymes; Multimycotoxin activity is unlikely.	Expensive; formulation is needed to ensure activity in harsh environments/in vivo; lack of knowledge on residual toxicity of degradation products.
Ultraviolet irradiation	Biotransformation	Effective using mild operational conditions, low cost, high operability at industrial scale; already in use for surface sanitization in food industry.	low penetration in solids and in turbid liquids; lack of knowledge on residual toxicity of degradation products.
Magnetic nanoparticles	Adsorption and biotransformation	Work through two modes of action; easy recovery; can be designed/functionalized for multimycotoxin binding activity.	lack of knowledge on the effects on food/feed matrices; residual toxicity of degradation products and of magnetic particles.
Plasma treatment	Biotransformation	Also inactivates fungal growth and mycotoxin production.	High cost of equipment; low penetration in solids and in turbid liquids; lack of knowledge on the effects on food/feed matrices; lack of knowledge on residual toxicity of degradation products.
Nanozymes	Adsorption and biotransformation	Work through two modes of action; high efficiency, stability, and reusability	lack of knowledge on the effects on food/feed matrices; lack of knowledge on residual toxicity of degradation products.