{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T01:23:55Z","timestamp":1779931435023,"version":"3.53.1"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,5]],"date-time":"2024-05-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1714867200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Universidad de Las Americas (UDLA) Quito","award":["VET.JDW.20.03"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["VET.JDW.20.03"]}]},{"name":"Universidad de Las Americas","award":["VET.JDW.20.03"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["VET.JDW.20.03"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Microorganisms"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Palm kernel cake (PKC), a byproduct of palm oil extraction, serves an important role in Ecuador\u2019s animal feed industry. The emergence of yellow-orange fungal growth in PKC on some cattle farms in Ecuador sparked concerns within the cattle industry regarding a potential mycotoxin-producing fungus on this substrate. Due to the limited availability of analytical chemistry techniques in Ecuador for mycotoxin detection, we chose to isolate and identify the fungus to determine its association with mycotoxin-producing genera. Through molecular identification via ITS region sequencing, we identified the yellow-orange fungus as the yeast Candida ethanolica. Furthermore, we isolated two other fungi\u2014the yeast Pichia kudriavzevii, and the fungus Geotrichum candidum. Molecular identification confirmed that all three species are not classified as mycotoxin-producing fungi but in contrast, the literature indicates that all three have demonstrated antifungal activity against Aspergillus and Penicillium species, genera associated with mycotoxin production. This suggests their potential use in biocontrol to counter the colonization of harmful fungi. We discuss preventive measures against the fungal invasion of PKC and emphasize the importance of promptly identifying fungi on this substrate. Rapid recognition of mycotoxin-producing and pathogenic genera holds the promise of mitigating cattle intoxication and the dissemination of mycotoxins throughout the food chain.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms12050937","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,6]],"date-time":"2024-05-06T15:09:36Z","timestamp":1715008176000},"page":"937","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Addressing the Concern of Orange-Yellow Fungus Growth on Palm Kernel Cake: Safeguarding Dairy Cattle Diets for Mycotoxin-Producing Fungi"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5364-7700","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Carlos","family":"Bastidas-Caldes","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"One Health Research Group, Facultad de Ingenier\u00eda y Ciencias Aplicadas, Biotecnolog\u00eda, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Quito 170530, Ecuador"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0546-8345","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"David","family":"Vasco-Julio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Posgrado en Ciencias Biol\u00f3gicas, Unidad de Posgrado, Edificio D, 1\u00b0 Piso, Circuito de Posgrados, Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad de M\u00e9xico 04510, Mexico"},{"name":"Centro de Investigaci\u00f3n Sobre Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto Nacional de Salud P\u00fablica, Cuernavaca 62050, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Maria","family":"Huilca-Ibarra","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"One Health Research Group, Facultad de Ingenier\u00eda y Ciencias Aplicadas, Biotecnolog\u00eda, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Quito 170530, Ecuador"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Salom\u00e9","family":"Guerrero-Freire","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"One Health Research Group, Facultad de Ingenier\u00eda y Ciencias Aplicadas, Biotecnolog\u00eda, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Quito 170530, Ecuador"},{"name":"Programa de Doctorado, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1063ACV, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4139-3018","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yanua","family":"Ledesma-Bravo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"One Health Research Group, Facultad de Ingenier\u00eda y Ciencias Aplicadas, Biotecnolog\u00eda, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Quito 170530, Ecuador"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4118-1015","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jacobus H.","family":"de Waard","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"One Health Research Group, Facultad de Ingenier\u00eda y Ciencias Aplicadas, Biotecnolog\u00eda, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Quito 170530, Ecuador"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,5]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"INEC (2024, March 10). 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