Effects of anti-aflatoxin of essential oils of Cuminum cyminum, Ziziphora clinopodioiedes and Nigella sativa

 Introduction: Aflatoxins are a large group of mycotoxins, which are produced by certain species of Aspergillus, including Aspergillus flavus, A. parasiticus and A.numius. This group of fungal toxins is considered as a leader of all mycotoxins. Therefore, many efforts have been performed for elimination or neutralization of these compositions in foods and feeds. The aims of this study were to survey the effects of anti-aflatoxin and anti-fungal essential oils of Cuminum cyminum, Ziziphora clinopodioiedes and Nigella sativa growth in Khorasan-e- Razavi province (Northeastern of Iran). Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, herbal substances which included Cuminum cyminum, Ziziphora clinopodioiedes and Nigella sativa were selected and collected on the basis of traditional medicine and their growing region. Then, their essential oils (essences) were extracted by hydro-distillation procedure. The concentration of each Aspergillus parasiticus aflatoxin (B1, B2, G1, G2, and Total) was mesured three times by Reverse Phase-High Performance Liquid Chromatography (RP-HPLC) technique in ng/ml (ppb). Also, the final concentration of each aflatoxin was measured following the impact of Cuminum cyminum, Ziziphora clinopodioiedes and Nigella sativa essences in concentrations of 0.25, 0.25, and 1.5 mg/ml, respectively.  Results: The inhibitory effect of above mentioned essential oils on producing of different aflatoxins was the essences of Cuminum cyminum,Nigella sativa and Ziziphora clinopodioiedes, respectively. Also, there was a significant and positive correlation between fungus dry weight and amount of total aflatoxin (P = 0.0005, r = 0.896). Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that Cminum cyminum, Nigella sativa and Ziziphora clinopodioiedes has an inhibitory effect on aflatoxin producing by Aspergillus parasiticus. In addtion, this study confirmed the traditional use of these herbs against microbial infections