A survey on 120 cereal samples (barley, maize, rice and wheat) from Algerian markets has been carried out to evaluate the presence of 15 mycotoxins (ochratoxin A, deoxynivalenol, fumonisin B1 and B2, T-2 and HT-2 toxins, zearalenone, fusarenon X, citrinin, sterigmatocystin, enniatins A, A1, B and B1, and beauvericin). With this purpose, a QuEChERS-based extraction and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) were used. Analytical results showed that 78 cereal samples (65%) were contaminated with at least one toxin, while 50% were contaminated with three to nine mycotoxins. T-2 toxin, citrinin, beauvericin and deoxynivalenol were the most commonly found mycotoxins (frequency of 50%, 41.6%, 40.8% and 33.3%, respectively). Fumonisins (B1 + B2), enniatins B and B1, deoxynivalenol and zearalenone registered high concentrations (289-48878 µg/kg, 1.2-5288 µg/kg, 15-4569 µg/kg, 48-2055 µg/kg and 10.4-579 µg/kg, respectively). Furthermore, concentrations higher than those allowed by the European Union (EU) were observed in 21, 8 and 1 samples for fumonisins, zearalenone and deoxinivalenol, respectively. As a conclusion, the high levels of fumonisins (B1 + B2) in maize and deoxynivalenol, zearalenone and HT-2 + T-2 toxins in wheat, represent a health risk for the average adult consumer in Algeria. These results pointed out the necessity of a consistent control and the definition of maximum allowed levels for mycotoxins in Algerian foodstuffs. Key Contribution:The study describes the incidence of 15 mycotoxins in 120 Algerian cereal samples (barley, maize, rice and wheat grains) by UHPLC-MS/MS. The results have pointed out the high co-occurrence of mycotoxins, as well as the high concentration (above the maximum allowed concentration) of some mycotoxins legislated in the EU in those cereals, posing a risk for consumers. These results highlight the necessity of establishing maximum levels for mycotoxins in Algeria.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a common crop in Algeria. From 2006 to 2008

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Fusarium oxysporum is an ubiquitous soil-borne fungus, having a high genetic and ecological diversity with the potential to cause diseases of many crop species of economic interest. Indeed, some strains of F. oxysporum known as pathogens generate common diseases such as wilting, root and crown rot on host plants. Two formae speciales are confined to the tomato: F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici (FOL) causing Fusarium wilt, while F. oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici (FORL) causes Fusarium crown and root rot. The study include 27 strains isolated from the stems, crown and roots of infected tomato plants; to confirm the identity of the fungus, the isolates were identified using analysis based on morphological criteria and sequencing of the translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF) gene using ef1 and ef2 primers. Twenty three strains belonged to F. oxysporum, three strains to Fusarium solani, and one strain to Fusarium redolens. Tomato seedlings were tested to confirm the pathogenicity of the isolates tested. Pathogenicity test confirmed that twenty two F. oxysporum isolates were pathogenic on tomato and produced crown and root rot typical of F. oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici forma specialis, while one strain initially identified as F. oxysporum did not induce disease symptoms and is considered as non-pathogenic. Additionally, no symptoms of Fusarium wilt were observed at all; therefore no strains can be affiliated to F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici forma specialis.

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Abstract. This study describes the synthesis of some novel compounds containing bis-1,3,4-oxadiazole bearing quaternary ammonium salt moieties. The target compounds were prepared from 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) or 2-(diethylamino) ethyl methacrylate (DEAEMA), using adipic acid as starting material. All the newly synthesized compounds showed satisfactory analytic data for the proposed structures, which were confi rmed by IR and NMR ( 1 H and 13 C) spectroscopy. The newly synthesized compounds were evaluated for their antibacterial activity against various gram-positive and gram-negative strains of bacteria, and the antifungal activities were tested against three phytopathogenic fungi namely, Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium commune and Fusarium rodelens. Some of the tested compounds displayed promising antibacterial and antifungal activities.Keywords: 1,3,4-oxadiazole, quaternary ammonium compounds, DMAEMA, DEAEMA, antimicrobial activities. IntroductionThe treatment of bacterial and fungal infectious diseases remains a challenging problem because of the increasing number of microbial pathogens [1][2][3]. The current interest in the development of new antimicrobial agents can be partially ascribed both to the increasing emergence of bacterial resistance to antibiotic therapy and to newly emerging pathogens [4]. It reinforces the need for the development of new and potent chemical entities or an improvement in the activity of the well-known chemical compounds. Considering this statement, the synthesis of analogues can be seen as an effi cient approach to optimize an active chemical structure and design new drugs [5][6][7][8], since simple structural changes can lead to better biological activities through modifi cations of physicochemical properties [9].Literature survey reveals that compounds containing 1,3,4 oxadiazole nucleus have demonstrated a wide range of pharmacological activities [10,11] Quaternary ammonium salts (QAS) constitute an important class of organic compounds that are present in a large number of biologically active molecules [24]. It was reported that the quaternary ammonium compounds have antimicrobial properties [25], show adsorption on negatively charged solids, act on the cell wall and have a direct or indirect lethal effect on the cell [26]. QAS were introduced as antimicrobial agents by Domagk over eighty years ago [27].In recent years the number of applications of QAS has been continuously increasing. They are widely used as biocides [28,29] [33,34]. In the design of new drugs, the combination of different pharmacophores frame may lead to compounds with interesting biological profi les [35]. Also, QAS incorporating heterocycles, e.g. 1,3,4-oxadiazole, displayed various pharmacological properties [36]. Prompted by these investigations, we have synthesized compounds 5a and 5b containing bis-1,3,4oxadiazole fragment with the attached quaternary ammonium group and their antimicrobial activity has been evaluated.

Abstract:Starting from lauric acid two novel quaternary ammonium salts containing 1,3,4-Oxadiazoles nucleus derivative from N,N-Diethylaminoethyl Methacrylate (DEAEMA) and N,NDimethylaminoethyl Methacrylate (DMAEMA) was successfully synthesized and characterized by IR, 1 H and 13 C NMR, All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for their preliminary in vitro antifungal activity against three fungal strains such as Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium commune and Fusarium rodelens. The synthesized compounds showed promising antifungal potential against the phytopathogenic test fungi.

This work was inspired by the growing international interest in the study of natural products of plant origin with bioactive properties that can replace synthetic chemical pesticides in the control of pathogens. The aim of this study was to explore the in vitro activity of Lanvandula dentata L. essential oil (EO) on Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis-lycopersici (FORL), a dangerous fungal plant pathogen, causal agent of tomato crown and root rot. Initially, we proceeded to identify the forma specialis of two strains of F. oxysporum by PCR based on the differences in the genes responsible for the synthesis of endo-polygalacturonases (pg1) and exo-polygalacturonases (pgx4) and then tested the activity of the EO on these strains by the direct contact method at different concentrations. The results showed that increasing the concentration of EO had a significant inhibitory effect, with a minimum inhibition rate of 49.3±2.2 % and 21.8±4.2 for the strains IB19501 and IB19502 respectively at the 0.25 μL/mL concentration and reaching 100±0.0 at the 1 μL/mL concentration for both strains. The data of this study reveal an important anti-fungal activity of the EO of L. dentata, these effects further validate the interest of our study and the traditional use of this plant, while indicating the possibilities of its potential use as a natural alternative to pesticides for the control of pathogenic fungi and thus preserve human health and the environment.