Factors Affecting the Presence of Ochratoxin A in Wines

Ochratoxin A (OTA) are synthesized mainly by different species of Aspergillus and Penicillium being its human toxicological effects reflected in different countries due to the consumption of different foods and beverages such as red, white, rose, and special wines. This review presents an overview of the direct (meteorological conditions, grape cultivation, and wine-making techniques) and indirect (latitude, year of production, use of pesticides, presence of spoilage microorganisms, conditions of storage of the harvested grapes, type of maceration, and conditions of fermentation), factors affecting the presence of OTA in wines.

Keywords:

• Ochratoxin A
• wines
• grapes
• Aspergillus spp.
• Penicillium spp

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This work has been supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology (AGL-2003-01407).

Notes

^a The biseriate species included A. niger and A. tubingensis

^b The uniseriate species included A. carbonarius, A. aculeatus and A. japonicus

^a Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Central Europe, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, USA

^b Algeria, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland

^a France, Italy, Spain

^a Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Central Europe, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, USA

^b France, Italy, Switzerland

^a Special kind of Greek wine with added resin from pine trees