On Tuesday, July 28, 2026, the Department of life sciences at the Faculty of science at the University of Mosul discussed the master’s thesis tagged ” the use of vegetable oils in inhibiting the growth of toxin-producing fungi ” presented by master’s student Ikhlas Abdul Rahim Mohammed Saleh al-metioti, from the specialty of Botany. The discussion was attended by a number of teachers of the Department of life sciences and graduate students. The study aimed to investigate the extent of contamination of barley syrup with fungi in the city of Mosul and its environs, isolate and diagnose contaminated fungal species, detect Aflatoxins and ochratoxins toxins using HPLC technology, as well as study the susceptibility of fungal isolates to the production of aflatoxins, cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) and other alkaloids, and evaluate the inhibitory effectiveness of thyme and peppermint oils in reducing the growth of fungi and the production of toxins, and determine the optimal concentrations for their use as natural and safe alternatives. The results of the study showed that 75% of the barley drink samples were contaminated with fungi, and the fungus was Aspergillus spp. Most commonly, it was followed by Cladosporium spp. Then Penicillium spp.. The study also proved the susceptibility of a number of fungal isolates to the production of Aflatoxins and cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) toxins, in addition to a number of fungal alkaloids, which confirms their role in the contamination of barley syrup with these toxins. The results also showed that the concentrations of Aflatoxins in some barley drink samples exceeded the international permissible limits, which poses a health risk of increasing the likelihood of cancer and genetic mutations, while the presence of contamination with Ochratoxins toxins was also recorded in some samples at levels exceeding the internationally permissible limits. The study proved the efficiency of vegetable oils in reducing the growth of fungi and the production of toxins, as thyme oil achieved complete inhibition (100%) at a concentration of 0.1%, while peppermint oil achieved complete inhibition (100%) at a concentration of 1%, highlighting the possibility of using them as natural and safe alternatives in reducing food contamination with fungi and mycotoxins. The discussion Committee was chaired by Dr. Hadeel Ahmed Khalaf Mahmoud, and the membership of assistant professor Dr. Zakaria Sami Abdul Razzaq Ahmed and assistant professor Dr. Warqa Saeed Qasim Mohammed, while Dr. Maha Akram Mohammed Ali Ahmed supervised the thesis. We wish our dear students continued success and success.

Government information and Communication Division

Tuesday, July 28, 2026