Fumonisin B1 (FB1) contamination in cereals and cereal products remains an important aspect of food safety because of its wide distribution and the potential health hazard. However, only a few microorganisms have been reported to effectively degrade FB1. In this present study, a bacterial consortium SAAS79 with highly FB1-degrading activity was isolated from the spent mushroom compost. The combination of antibiotic-driven selection and 16S rDNA sequencing identified the Pseudomonas genus as the key FB1-degrading member. The microbial consortium could degrade more than 90% of 10 μg/mL FB1 after incubation for 24 h at pH of 5-7 and temperature of 28-35 °C. The enzymes from the intracellular space were proved to be responsible for FB1 degradation, which eliminated about 90% of 10 μg/mL FB1 in 3 h. Besides, liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TOF/MS) analysis identified two degradation products of FB1, and their toxicity on the monkey kidney cells (MARC-145) was significantly lower (p < 0.05) compared with the parent FB1. Overall, the consortium SAAS79 and its crude enzymes may be a potential choice for the decontamination of FB1 in the feed and food industry. Also, the bacterial consortium provides a new source of genes for the development of enzymatic detoxification agent.
Keywords: Bacterial consortium; Biodegradation; Enzymatic detoxification; Fumonisin B1; Metabolites.