ArticleProceedings of the Japan Academy. Series B, Physical and biological sciences2025
Mechanism of puberulic acid contamination in red yeast rice tablets that caused a serious food poisoning outbreak in Japan.
Article in Proceedings of the Japan Academy. Series B, Physical and biological sciences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Impacts of Fungal Infection and Mycotoxin Contamination on Nutritional Quality and Safety of Protein-Rich Pulses.Food safety (Tokyo, Japan) · 2026Article
- Two novel compounds (lovastatin analog Y and lovastatin analog Z) isolated from health foods containing beni-koji (red yeast rice) with adverse events report.Journal of natural medicines · 2026Article
- Assessment of mutagenic potential of puberulic acid contaminated in red yeast rice (beni-koji) health food supplements.Mutagenesis · 2026Article
- The Pathophysiological Mechanism of Beni-koji Choleste-Help or Puberulic Acid-Induced Kidney Injury.Kidney international reports · 2026Article
- Elucidation of puberulic acid-induced nephrotoxicity using stem cell-based kidney organoids.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- A 28-day subacute toxicity study of puberulic acid in Crl:CD(SD) rats.Journal of toxicologic pathology · 2025Article
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7 authors.
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Abstract
In Japan, serious food poisoning among individuals who took supplement tablets for lowering plasma cholesterol levels have been publicized since late March 2024. The tablets were prepared from red yeast rice (RYR), a product of Monascus pilosus. Puberulic acid (PA) was detected as an unexpected compound in tablets that caused food poisoning. We conducted an on-site investigation at the RYR production factory to determine the cause of PA contamination of the tablets. Fungi capable of producing PA were detected in wipe samples from the factory and were identified as Penicillium adametzioides. To understand the route through which P. adametzioides contaminated RYR and produced PA, coculture experiments with M. pilosus and P. adametzioides were performed. P. adametzioides grew on rice covered with M. pilosus and produced PA. These results suggest that PA-producing P. adametzioides inhabited the RYR production factory and accidently contaminated the culture of M. pilosus. Consequently, RYR tablets contaminated with PA were manufactured and caused the food poisoning outbreak.
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