Dynamics of boar semen motility inhibition as a semi-quantitative measurement of Bacillus cereus emetic toxin (Cereulide)

Qualitative and quantitative application of a computer assisted sperm analyzer (CASA) for detection and quantification of cereulide was described. The plot of the decrease of the percentage of boar semen progressive motility (PMOT%) in function of time and the visual inspection of curves provided a qualitative comparison between different samples (curve slope corresponds to the amount of cereulide in the sample). If the change of PMOT% over a time required for achieving PMOT% drop to 10% (ΔPMOT%/Δτ) is plotted against the standard curve (obtained with known concentrations of valinomycin), a semi-quantitative estimation of the amount of cereulide in the sample is obtained. An optimized CASA method was applied to determine the production of cereulide under different conditions. No cereulide was found in aerated samples and in samples incubated at 12 °C. The amount of cereulide produced depended on the agar medium used, type of Bacillus cereus strain and the amount of oxygen present in the atmosphere.