Abstract
Fumonisins are a group of toxic secondary metabolites that are produced by Fusarium verticillioides which are associated with poultry health hazard and great economic losses. The objective of the present study was to develop an immunological method to detect F. verticillioides in poultry feed samples. An indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ic-ELISA) based on a polyclonal antibody against 67 kDa protein of the F. verticillioides 97K exoantigen was developed to detect this fungus. Antibody anti-67 kDa protein showed cross-reactivity against F. graminearum (2–7%) and F. sporotrichioides (10%), but no or low cross-reactivity against Aspergillus sp. and Penicillium sp. exoantigens. The detection limit for the 67 kDa protein of F. verticillioides was 29 ng/mL. Eighty-one poultry feed samples were analyzed for Fusarium sp. count, 67 kDa protein of F. verticillioides and fumonisin concentrations. Eighty of the 81 feed samples (98.6%) showed Fusarium sp. contamination (mean 6.2 x 104 CFU/g). Mean 67 kDa protein and fumonisin concentration in the poultry feed samples was 21.0 µg/g and 1.02 µg/g, respectively. The concentration of 67 kDa protein, as determined by ic-ELISA correlated positively (p < 0.05) with fumonisin levels (r = 0.76). These results suggest that this ic-ELISA has potential to detect F. verticillioides and predict fumonisin contamination in poultry feed samples.
Highlights
Brazil is the third largest corn producer in the world, and in the 2016/2017 harvest season, production reached 97.7 million tons [1]
An Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) based on polyclonal antibody was developed to detect F. verticillioides in corn-based poultry feed
When considering the differences in geographic distribution and host/substrate preference of the various Fusarium species [30], in the present study the species were selected based on their occurrence in Brazilian corn, the major ingredient of poultry feed [24,26,28,31]
Summary
Brazil is the third largest corn producer in the world, and in the 2016/2017 harvest season, production reached 97.7 million tons [1]. 50% of corn production is intended for the animal feed industry (49 million tons) and 28.7 million tons are directed to the broiler feed industry [2]. Because of its nutritional quality, corn is susceptible to contamination by toxigenic fungi, i.e., mycotoxin producers. Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites that are produced by filamentous fungi, which can cause acute and/or chronic toxic effects in both humans and animals at low concentration levels. Fusarium verticillioides (Sacc.) Nirenberg (synonym, F. moniliforme (J.) Sheldon); teleomorph, Gibberella moniliformis (synonym G. fujikuroi mating population A) is a primary corn pathogen and the main producer of fumonisins [3]
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