Abstract:The changing trend of deoxynivalenol (DON) content in barley and its removal by various processing technologies were examined through simulating different storage environments and establishing relevant prediction models. Barley samples were stored at different temperatures (5, 15, 25, 35 ℃) and relative environmental humidities (55%, 65%, 75%, 85% RH) for 180, 270, and 360 d, respectively, before being processed via steaming, boiling, and fermentation. Then, the changing trend of the DON content was determined by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the radial basis kernel function parameters were optimized by genetic algorithm to construct a support vector machine (SVM) pollution prediction model. The results showed that the DON content increased throughout the whole storage process, and 75%RH was the optimum environment for DON generation. In terms of processing for detoxification, it was found that the removal of DON differed among the three different processes, and the addition of sodium carbonate during processing could effectively promote DON degradation. However, the removal decreased when the added sodium carbonate was up to a certain level. The removal of DON by boiling was the most effective, with the removal rate reaching 50.81%~70.99%. The DON removal rate for the steaming process was lower (only 9.99%~24.37%). In the whole process of beer brewing (germination, saccharification, and fermentation), the DON removal rate first decreased then increased, with the removal rate in the range of 13.15%~41.67%. This study provides technical guidance for optimizing conditions for the safe storage of barley and effective reduction of the DON content during processing.
