Question - What is bongkrekic acid and in what outbreaks has this chemical been implicated?
Answer - The cited article notes “Bongkrekic acid (BA) has a unique mechanism of toxicity among the mitochondrial toxins: it inhibits adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT) rather than the electron transport chain. Bongkrekic acid is produced by the bacterium Burkholderia gladioli pathovar cocovenenans (B. cocovenenans) which has been implicated in outbreaks of food-borne illness involving coconut and corn-based products in Indonesia and China.” (Anwar M et al. Bongkrekic acid- A review of a lessor known mitochondrial toxin. 217 JMT 13(2): 173-179)
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