Activated carbon from pistachio shells: A promising approach to improve health metrics in mice with zearalenone exposure

Zearalenone (ZEN), an estrogenic mycotoxin produced by Fusarium species, poses persistent challenges to food and feed safety due to its potent toxicological effects and widespread occurrence in cereal-based products. This study investigated the protective efficacy of activated carbon (AC) derived from pistachio shells, an abundant agricultural by-product against ZEN-induced toxicity in mice. Pistachio shell carbon was prepared through chemical activation and comprehensively characterized using SEM, FTIR spectroscopy, and BET surface area analysis. Activation increased surface area from 4.1 to 275.9 m²/g and enhanced pore volume from 0.009 to 0.26 cm³/g, confirming substantial improvements in adsorptive architecture. Forty BALB/c mice were assigned to four dietary treatments: control, ZEN-contaminated diet, and ZEN diets supplemented with non-activated or activated carbon (0.5 g/kg). ZEN exposure markedly reduced weight gain, feed intake, antioxidant enzyme activity (GPx, SOD, CAT), and jejunal villus morphology, while elevating serum ALT, AST, and ALP activities. Supplementation with activated carbon significantly ameliorated these adverse effects, restoring growth performance, improving antioxidant status, normalizing liver enzymes, and enhancing intestinal integrity. Histopathological observations corroborated reduced mucosal damage in AC-treated mice. These findings demonstrate that pistachio shell–based activated carbon is a potent, sustainable, and low-cost mycotoxin adsorbent capable of mitigating ZEN toxicity. The study highlights a promising strategy for simultaneous agricultural waste valorization and enhancement of food and feed safety systems. • Activated carbon derived from pistachio shells serves as a beneficial feed additive. • Dietary inclusion of pistachio shells improved serum redox potential, and jejunum characteristics in mice on a ZEA-contaminated diet. • Pistachio shell-based adsorbent mitigated intestinal damage and promoted sustainable detoxification.