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Pathogens
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Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and...
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Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and Marketing

A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817). This special issue belongs to the section "Fungal Pathogens".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2024 | Viewed by 6660

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Giovanni Beccari

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy
Interests: fungi; Fusarium; mycotoxins; cereals; Fusarium head blight; wheat; barley; qPCR
Dr. Mara Quaglia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy
Interests: agricultural and biological sciences; apple blue mold; callose; defensin; lipoxygenase; Malus domestica L.; pathogenesis-related proteins
Dr. Francesco Tini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy
Interests: plant pathology; fungi; fusarium head blight; barley net blotch; wheat; barly
Dr. Lorenzo Covarelli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy
Interests: mycotoxins; fungal ecology; fungal taxonomy; fungal diversity; fungal biotechnology; fungal genetics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The presence of mycotoxigenic fungi in food commodities has an impact not only on potential yield losses but also on decreased quality and food safety. This is due to the ability of these fungi to biosynthesize mycotoxins, representing one of the most important and worldwide spread risks for final consumers’ health. In fact, mycotoxins are fungal secondary metabolites able to cause a varied range of toxic effects in humans and animals. Therefore, the authorities of some countries have established maximum admitted levels in different food matrices for several of these compounds. Mycotoxigenic fungi can develop in a wide variety of food commodities from the phases of cultivation to those of storage and marketing. This greatly amplifies the efforts of each player of the production chain to manage their presence and minimize their negative effects. Therefore, monitoring the presence of mycotoxigenic fungi, and their mycotoxins, associated with food commodities during the cultivation, storage and marketing phases is one of the most important priorities for researchers.

For this reason, this Special Issue aims to collect contributions relative to the most recent, original and innovative studies in this research field. In detail, investigations relative to the presence, the behavior and the epidemiology of mycotoxigenic fungi associated with different food commodities throughout the world during the cultivation, storage and marketing phases are welcome. In addition, contributions relative to the trend and evolution of mycotoxin accumulation in food matrices and to the prevention and management of mycotoxigenic fungi will be included. 

Dr. Giovanni Beccari
Dr. Mara Quaglia
Dr. Francesco Tini
Dr. Lorenzo Covarelli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pathogens is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fungi
  • mycotoxins
  • plant pathogens
  • prevention and management
  • toxicity
  • pre-harvest
  • post-harvest
  • marketing

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 3707 KiB  
Article
Effect of Temperature, Water Activity and Incubation Time on Trichothecene Production by Fusarium cerealis Isolated from Durum Wheat Grains
by Jessica G. Erazo, Sofía A. Palacios, Nuria A. Veliz, Agostina Del Canto, Silvana Plem, María L. Ramirez and Adriana M. Torres
Pathogens 2023, 12(5), 736; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12050736 - 19 May 2023
Viewed by 1211
Abstract
Fusarium cerealis is a causal agent of Fusarium Head Blight in wheat, and it produces both deoxynivalenol (DON) and nivalenol (NIV). Nevertheless, the effect of environmental factors on the growth and mycotoxin production of this species has not been studied so far. The [...] Read more.
Fusarium cerealis is a causal agent of Fusarium Head Blight in wheat, and it produces both deoxynivalenol (DON) and nivalenol (NIV). Nevertheless, the effect of environmental factors on the growth and mycotoxin production of this species has not been studied so far. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of environmental factors on the growth and mycotoxin production of F. cerealis strains. All strains were able to grow in a wide range of water activity (aW) and temperatures, but their mycotoxin production was influenced by strain and environmental factors. NIV was produced at high aW and temperatures, while optimal conditions for DON production were observed at low aW. Interestingly, some strains were able to simultaneously produce both toxins, which could pose a more significant risk for grain contamination. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and Marketing)
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15 pages, 5521 KiB  
Article
Interacting Abiotic Factors Affect Growth and Mycotoxin Production Profiles of Alternaria Section Alternaria Strains on Chickpea-Based Media
by Cindy J. Romero Donato, María J. Nichea, Eugenia Cendoya, Vanessa G. L. Zachetti and María L. Ramirez
Pathogens 2023, 12(4), 565; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12040565 - 06 Apr 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1174
Abstract
Chickpea is susceptible to fungal infection and mycotoxin contamination. Argentina exports most of its chickpea production; thus, its quality is of concern. The Alternaria fungal genus was found to be prevalent in chickpea samples from Argentina. The species within this genus are able [...] Read more.
Chickpea is susceptible to fungal infection and mycotoxin contamination. Argentina exports most of its chickpea production; thus, its quality is of concern. The Alternaria fungal genus was found to be prevalent in chickpea samples from Argentina. The species within this genus are able to produce mycotoxins, such as alternariol (AOH), alternariol monomethyl ether (AME), and tenuazonic acid (TA). In this context, we evaluated the effect of water activity (0.99, 0.98, 0.96, 0.95, 0.94, 0.92, and 0.90 aW), temperature (4, 15, 25, and 30 °C), incubation time (7, 14, 21, and 28 days), and their interactions on mycelial growth and AOH, AME, and TA production on chickpea-based medium by two A. alternata strains and one A. arborescens strain isolated from chickpea in Argentina. Maximum growth rates were obtained at the highest aW (0.99) and 25 °C, with growth decreasing as the aW of the medium and the temperature were reduced. A. arborescens grew significantly faster than A. alternata. Mycotoxin production was affected by both variables (aW and temperature), and the pattern obtained was dependent on the strains/species evaluated. In general, both A. alternata strains produced maximum amounts of AOH and AME at 30 °C and 0.99–0.98 aW, while for TA production, both strains behaved completely differently (maximum levels at 25 °C and 0.96 aW for one strain and 30 °C and 0.98 aW for the other). A. arborescens produced maximum amounts of the three toxins at 25 °C and 0.98 aW. Temperature and aW conditions for mycotoxin production were slightly narrower than those for growth. Temperature and aW conditions assayed are those found during chickpea grain development in the field, and also could be present during storage. This study provides useful data on the conditions representing a risk for contamination of chickpea by Alternaria toxins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and Marketing)
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23 pages, 2498 KiB  
Article
Marketed Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) Seeds: A Mycotoxin-Free Matrix Contaminated by Mycotoxigenic Fungi
by Mara Quaglia, Giovanni Beccari, Giovanna Fabiana Vella, Riccardo Filippucci, Dario Buldini, Andrea Onofri, Michael Sulyok and Lorenzo Covarelli
Pathogens 2023, 12(3), 418; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12030418 - 06 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1244
Abstract
A total of 25 marketed quinoa seed samples different for origin, farming system and packaging were analyzed for the presence of mycotoxigenic fungi (by isolation both on Potato Dextrose Agar and with the deep-freezing blotter method) and relative contamination by mycotoxins (by LC-MS/MS [...] Read more.
A total of 25 marketed quinoa seed samples different for origin, farming system and packaging were analyzed for the presence of mycotoxigenic fungi (by isolation both on Potato Dextrose Agar and with the deep-freezing blotter method) and relative contamination by mycotoxins (by LC-MS/MS analysis). Fungal microorganisms, but not mycotoxins, were detected in all the samples, and 25 isolates representative of the mycobiota were obtained. Morphological and molecular characterization and, for some isolates, the in vitro mycotoxigenic profile, allowed the identification of 19 fungal species within five different genera: Alternaria, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium and Fusarium. Among the identified species, Alternaria abundans, A. chartarum, A. arborescens, Cladosporium allicinum, C. parasubtilissimum, C. pseudocladosporioides, C. uwebraunianum, Aspergillus jensenii, A. tubingensis, Penicillium dipodomyis, P. verrucosum and P. citreosulfuratum were first reported on quinoa, and Alternaria infectoria and Fusarium oxysporum were first reported on quinoa seeds. The geographical origin, farming system and packaging were showed to affect the amount and type of the isolated fungal species, highlighting that the level of fungal presence and their related secondary metabolites is conditioned by different steps of the quinoa supply chain. However, despite the presence of mycotoxigenic fungi, the marketed quinoa seeds analyzed resulted in being free from mycotoxins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and Marketing)
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13 pages, 1939 KiB  
Article
Assembly, Annotation, and Comparative Whole Genome Sequence of Fusarium verticillioides Isolated from Stored Maize Grains
by Vishwambar D. Navale, Amol M. Sawant, Varun U. Gowda and Koteswara Rao Vamkudoth
Pathogens 2022, 11(7), 810; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens11070810 - 20 Jul 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2069
Abstract
Fusarium verticillioides is a plant pathogenic fungus affecting a wide range of crops worldwide due to its toxigenic properties. F. verticillioides BIONCL4 strain was isolated from stored maize grain samples in India, and produces high amount of fumonisin B1 (FB1). We report a [...] Read more.
Fusarium verticillioides is a plant pathogenic fungus affecting a wide range of crops worldwide due to its toxigenic properties. F. verticillioides BIONCL4 strain was isolated from stored maize grain samples in India, and produces high amount of fumonisin B1 (FB1). We report a comparative genomic analysis of F. verticillioides, covering the basic genome information, secretome, and proteins involved in host–pathogen interactions and mycotoxin biosynthesis. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was performed using the Illumina platform with an assembly size of 42.91 Mb, GC content of 48.24%, and 98.50% coverage with the reference genome (GCA000149555). It encodes 15,053 proteins, including 2058 secretory proteins, 676 classical secretory proteins, and 569 virulence and pathogenicity-related proteins. There were also 1447 genes linked to carbohydrate active enzymes (CaZymes) and 167 genes related to mycotoxin production. Furthermore, F. verticillioides genome comparison revealed information about the species’ evolutionary history. The overall study helps in disease prevention and management of mycotoxins to ensure food safety. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mycotoxigenic Fungi Associated with Food Commodities during Cultivation, Storage and Marketing)
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