Aflatoxin B1 dialcohol is an aflatoxin B1 metabolite. Aflatoxins are naturally occurring mycotoxins that are produced by many species of Aspergillus, a fungus, most notably Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. At least 13 different types of aflatoxin are produced in nature. Aflatoxin B1 is considered the most toxic and is produced by both Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. The native habitat of Aspergillus is in soil, decaying vegetation, hay, and grains undergoing microbiological deterioration and it invades all types of organic substrates whenever conditions are favorable for its growth. Favorable conditions include high moisture content (at least 7%) and high temperature. Aflatoxins B1 (AFB1) are contaminants of improperly stored foods; they are potent genotoxic and carcinogenic compounds, exerting their effects through damage to DNA. They can also induce mutations that increase oxidative damage. (PMID: 17214555). Crops which are frequently affected by Aspergillus contamination include cereals (maize, sorghum, pearl millet, rice, wheat), oilseeds (peanut, soybean, sunflower, cotton), spices (chile peppers, black pepper, coriander, turmeric, ginger), and tree nuts (almond, pistachio, walnut, coconut, brazil nut). Aflatoxin B1 dialcohol is a derivative of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) that is formed from AFB1-dihydrodiol (AFB1-dhd) by a novel aldehyde reductase (Aflatoxin B1 aldehyde reductase) (PMID: 1134261). Aflatoxin B1 aldehyde reductases (AFARs) are inducible members of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily. They convert aflatoxin B1 dialdehyde derived from the exo- and endo-8,9-epoxides into a number of reduced alcohol products that might be less capable of forming covalent adducts with proteins (PMID: 18266327). AFB1 dialdehyde does not bind to DNA but can react with protein lysine groups. There are two principal techniques that can be used to detect levels of aflatoxin in humans. One measures the AFB1-guanine adduct in the urine of subjects. The presence of this breakdown product indicates exposure to aflatoxin B1 in the past 24 hours. The second technique involves the measurement of the AFB1-albumin adduct level in the blood serum.