Contamination of maize kernels with mycotoxins after harvest

Abstract

The species of the genus Fusarium and Aspergillus are the most common pathogens of maize kernels worldwide. The most common species among them are F. verticillioides, F. graminearum and A. flavus. These fungi produce a wide spectrum of mycotoxins, among which the most common are fusariotoxins: trichothecenes-deoxynivalenol (DON), fumonisins (FBs) and aflatoxins: aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). The aim of this study was to examine the mycopopulation on maize kernels after harvest, as well as the concentration of their mycotoxins in kernels. Standard mycological examinations of maize kernels revealed the presence of toxigenic species of fungi from three genus, Fusarium, Aspergillus and Penicillium. In the examined samples, the species F. verticillioides was most often isolated in majority of hybrids, with a maximum incidence of 32%, while the presence of Aspergillus spp. was from 0 to 17%. Mycotoxicological analysis of maize kernels was performed by the ELISA method using a commercial kit (Tecna S.r.l., Italy). All analysed samples were positive for the presence of at least one mycotoxin. The differences between the examined hybrids in the concentration of mycotoxins in the grain were statistically significant (P <0.001) for DON and FBs, but not for the content of AFB1. Likewise, the interaction between hybrids and localities was statistically significant (P <0.001) for DON and FBS content, while it was not statistically significant for AFB1 concentration. The average DON concentrations were 127,55 µg kg–1 , FBs 3050,21 µg kg–1 , and AFB1 2,98 µg kg–1 .