Fusarium Head Blight: Effect of Infection Timing on Spread of Fusarium graminearum and Spatial Distribution of Deoxynivalenol within Wheat Spikes

Abstract

Most studies of Fusarium head blight (FHB) focused on wheat infection at anthesis. Less is known about infections at later stages. In this study, the effect of infection timing on the development of FHB and the distribution of fungal biomass and deoxynivalenol (DON) along wheat spikes was investigated. Under greenhouse conditions, two wheat varieties were point-inoculated with Fusarium graminearum starting from anthesis until 25 days after anthesis. The fungus and fungal DNA were isolated from the centers and the bases of all the spikes but not from the tips for all inoculation times and both varieties. In each variety, the amount of fungal DNA and the content of DON and deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside (DON-3-G) were higher in the center than in the base for all inoculation times. A positive correlation was found between the content of fungal DNA and DON in the centers as well as the bases of both varieties. This study showed that F. graminearum grows downward within infected wheat spikes and that the accumulation of DON is largely confined to the colonized tissue. Moreover, F. graminearum was able to infect wheat kernels and cause contamination with mycotoxins even when inoculated 25 days after anthesis.

Biocontrol of Fusarium graminearum, a Causal Agent of Fusarium Head Blight of Wheat, and Deoxynivalenol Accumulation: From In Vitro to In Planta

“…In our experiments, we could show that DON amount in wheat samples inoculated with both Fg and M20 extract was significantly reduced to 73% compared to samples that were inoculated only with Fg. Furthermore, we could show that amount of F. graminearum DNA was highly correlated to DON accumulation which were consistent with previous findings [ 3 , 42 , 43 ]. These results indicate that M20 extract contributes to the suppression of FHB via the degradation of the DON.…”

FgRab5 and FgRab7 are essential for endosomes biogenesis and non-redundantly recruit the retromer complex to the endosomes in Fusarium graminearum

“…In addition to wheat, F. graminearum also attacks and causes massive destruction of other small grain cereals such as barley (Yang et al 2013). The grains of the infected cereals are usually unsafe for consumption as the pathogen releases life-threatening mycotoxins such as zearalenone and deoxynivalenol (DON) that contaminate the grains (Alisaac et al 2020). Today, FHB stands as a global concern, causing great economic losses and posing threats to global food security (Chakraborty and Newton 2011), hence the urgent need to tackle this problem.…”

Detection of wheat Fusarium head blight using UAV-based spectral and image feature fusion

“…Various spatial resolution images are worth considering in the future. Finally, the occurrence of wheat FHB is related to the time of infection ( Alisaac et al, 2020 ) and meteorological factors, such as temperature and humidity. In the future, we will aim to consider wheat infection time and meteorological factors to explore early FHB detection methods and effectively prevent and control FHB occurrence and outbreak.…”