Resistance to Fusarium Head Blight, Kernel Damage, and Concentrations of Fusarium Mycotoxins in the Grain of Winter Wheat Lines

Abstract

Fusarium head blight (FHB) can contaminate cereal grains with mycotoxins. Winter wheat can also become infected with FHB and is more resistant than durum wheat to head infection but less than other small-grain cereals. The aim of this study was to identify winter wheat lines that combine low levels of head infection and kernel damage with low levels of grain contamination with mycotoxins. Resistance of 27 winter wheat lines (four with resistance gene Fhb1) and cultivars to FHB was evaluated over a three-year (2017–2019) experiment established in two locations (Poznań and Radzików, Poland). At the anthesis stage, heads were inoculated with Fusarium culmorum isolates. The FHB index was scored, and the percentage of Fusarium-damaged kernels (FDKs) was assessed. The grain was analyzed for type B trichothecenes (deoxynivalenol and derivatives and nivalenol) and zearalenone content. The average FHB index of both locations was 12.9%. The proportion of FDK was 6.9% in weight and 8.5% in number. The average content of deoxynivalenol amounted to 3.543 mg/kg, and the average amount of nivalenol was 2.115 mg/kg. In total, we recorded 5.804 m/kg of type B trichothecenes. The zearalenone content in the grain was 0.214 mg/kg. Relationships between the FHB index, FDK, and mycotoxin contents were highly significant for wheat lines; however, these relationships were stronger for FDK than for FHB index. Breeding lines combining all types of FHB resistance were observed, five of which had resistance levels similar to those of wheat lines with the Fhb1 gene.

Quantification of DNA of <em>Fusarium culmorum</em> and Trichothecene Genotypes 3ADON and NIV in the Grain of Winter Wheat

“…The purpose of the investigation was to find relationships between the weather conditions in the experimental years and the locations and the amount of F. culmorum DNA and trichothecene genotypes, as well as the proportions between them. DNA concentrations were also related to the resistance parameters to FHB and mycotoxin concentrations shown in our previous article [44].…”

“…This research is based on the plant material described by us in the paper of Ochodzki et al. [44]. We selected 12 lines and cultivars that differ in resistance to FHB and subjected them to real-time PCR analysis for the amount of F. culmorum DNA, as well as to quantify the trichothecene genotypes 3ADON and NIV.…”

Time Course Metabolite Profiling of Fusarium Head Blight-Infected Hard Red Spring Wheat Using Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Quadrupole Time of Flight/MS

“…It is considered that type II resistance (resistance to disease spread within the spike) is the most used in wheat. 4 Aside from type II resistance seen for cultivar sources like Sumai 3 and Niang, the genetics of the other types of resistance remain to be fully elucidated. Sumai 3 is widely used as a breeding source for resistance due to a quantitative trait loci (QTL) on chromosome 3BS or Fhb1, which has been identified to provide a high type II resistance in the range of 15−60% of phenotypic variation.…”

“…However, no wheat or barley variety is completely immune. It is considered that type II resistance (resistance to disease spread within the spike) is the most used in wheat . Aside from type II resistance seen for cultivar sources like Sumai 3 and Niang, the genetics of the other types of resistance remain to be fully elucidated.…”

Assessment of Fusarium-Damaged Kernels in Common Wheat in Romania in the Years 2015 and 2016 with Extreme Weather Events

“…FDK measurements can be performed through visual estimation and manual counting or weighing, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), image-based optical sorting, and digital imaging seed phenotyping. Evaluations of these methods have shown that visual estimation and manual counting or weighing of FDKs have medium to strong and direct correlations with deoxynivalenol [ 53 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 ]. Contamination with fungi and mycotoxins in wheat FDKs can continue post-harvest, during transport or storage, and can be reduced by physical, chemical, or biological methods without being completely eliminated [ 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 ].…”