Changes in the Fusarium Head Blight Complex of Malting Barley in a Three-Year Field Experiment in Italy.

Giovanni Beccari,Lorenzo Covarelli,Antonio Prodi,Francesco Tini,Marwa Limayma,Souheib Oueslati,Umberto Bonciarelli,Andrea Onofri

doi:10.3390/toxins9040120

Giovanni Beccari, Lorenzo Covarelli + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9040120

Copy DOI

Abstract

In this study, conducted for three years on eleven malting barley varieties cultivated in central Italy, the incidence of different mycotoxigenic fungal genera, the identification of the Fusarium species associated with the Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) complex, and kernels contamination with deoxynivalenol (DON) and T-2 mycotoxins were determined. The influence of climatic conditions on Fusarium infections and FHB complex composition was also investigated. Fusarium species were always present in the three years and the high average and maximum temperatures during anthesis mainly favored their occurrence. The FHB complex was subject to changes during the three years and the main causal agents were F. poae, F. avenaceum, F. tricinctum and F. graminearum, which, even if constantly present, never represented the principal FHB agent. The relative incidence of Fusarium species changed because of climatic conditions occurring during the seasons. The FHB complex was composed of many different Fusarium species and some of them were associated with a specific variety and/or with specific weather parameters, indicating that the interaction between a certain plant genotype and climatic conditions may influence the presence of Fusarium spp. causing infections. With regard to mycotoxin contamination, T-2 toxin, in some cases, was found in kernels at levels that exceeded EU recommended values.

Highlights

With a global production of above 145 million tons and a cultivated surface of 50 million hectares in 2014 [1], barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is one of the most important cereal crops in the world
Among the above‐mentioned fungal genera, which were recovered during the present study, we focused our attention on the genus Fusarium, as it includes several important pathogenic species to barley that are capable of mycotoxin production
The present work shows that the malting barley kernels produced in the examined area resulted to be naturally contaminated by a wide range of mycotoxigenic fungi, including Fusarium species, which changed their relative incidence in relation to climatic conditions occurring during the seasons

Summary

Introduction

With a global production of above 145 million tons and a cultivated surface of 50 million hectares in 2014 [1], barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is one of the most important cereal crops in the world. Barley grains are extensively used for malt production, representing 90% of total malt destined to the beer industry [2]. In 2014, the world beer production obtained by malting barley was estimated in about. Many microorganisms may have a negative impact on barley cultivation, malting production and brewing processes [3]. Fusarium spp. are able to biosynthesize different types of mycotoxins that are considered a major safety concern in the malting and brewing industry, due to their negative properties, which are potentially transferable from barley grains to malt and beer [9]. A recent study assessing the exposure of the European population to mycotoxins through beer consumption showed that, even if no toxicological concern was associated to mycotoxin exposure for average beer consumers, the contribution of this commodity to the daily intake is not negligible for heavy beer-drinkers [11]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion