Professor Pieter Steyn, senior researcher at the department of chemistry and polymer science at Stellenbosch University, has distinguished himself in the area of the chemistry and biosynthesis of mycotoxins.
These toxins are produced on substrates by the secondary metabolism of fungi. Steyn holds the distinction of having a toxigenic fungus bear his name: Aspergillus steynii. He received this honour for his work on the Ochratoxins, a group of fungal toxins second only in importance to the aflatoxins, a group of potent liver carcinogens.
Steyn has devoted his career to the hazardous substances produced by fungi growing on cereals, coffee and nuts. Mycotoxins are present wherever toxigenic fungi can be found, for example cereals and nuts and on vines. Their impact on the safety of food during the growing, production and processing phases may be life threatening. Some of the mycotoxins are carcinogenic (aflatoxins, ochratoxins and fumonisins), whereas the aflatoxins and ochratoxins are also immunotoxic, weakening the immune system of man and domestic animals.
Based on expertise gained by Steyn’s research, in which the chemical characteristics of mycotoxins were scrutinised and recorded, sophisticated analytical methods were developed to determine these toxins at the parts per billion level, as well as to detoxify contaminated feeds and control their effects in the food chain.