Composition of Fusarium species causing natural spike infection in wheat

Abstract

Numerous Fusarium species have been associated with the Fusarium head blight (FHB) disease of wheat, barley and other small-grain cereals, reducing worldwide cereal crop yields and, as a consequence of their mycotoxin production in the cereal grain, having an impact on both human and animal health.The year 2010 was extremely favourable for Fusarium head blight pathogens. Over a hundred symptomatic wheat heads were collected from various locations in Hungary. The aim was to determine the diversity of the Fusarium species infecting winter wheat ears. A total of 86 Fusarium spp. were morphologically identified from diseased kernels. F. sambucinum was found to be present in two of the Martonvásár samples. This pathogen had only previously been detected extremely sporadically. The species F. culmorum and F. verticillioides were found at a much lower rate than expected, while none of the isolates were identified as F. poae. On the basis of the results, 95% of the isolates belonged to the Fusarium graminearum species complex.