What Is Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) Resistance and What Are Its Food Safety Risks in Wheat? Problems and Solutions—A Review

Abstract

The term “Fusarium Head Blight” (FHB) resistance supposedly covers common resistances to different Fusarium spp. without any generally accepted evidence. For food safety, all should be considered with their toxins, except for deoxynivalenol (DON). Disease index (DI), scabby kernels (FDK), and DON steadily result from FHB, and even the genetic regulation of Fusarium spp. may differ; therefore, multitoxin contamination is common. The resistance types of FHB form a rather complex syndrome that has been the subject of debate for decades. It seems that resistance types are not independent variables but rather a series of components that follow disease and epidemic development; their genetic regulation may differ. Spraying inoculation (Type 1 resistance) includes the phase where spores land on palea and lemma and spread to the ovarium and also includes the spread-inhibiting resistance factor; therefore, it provides the overall resistance that is needed. A significant part of Type 1-resistant QTLs could, therefore, be Type 2, requiring the retesting of the QTLs; this is, at least, the case for the most effective ones. The updated resistance components are as follows: Component 1 is overall resistance, as discussed above; Component 2 includes spreading from the ovarium through the head, which is a part of Component 1; Component 3 includes factors from grain development to ripening (FDK); Component 4 includes factors influencing DON contamination, decrease, overproduction, and relative toxin resistance; and for Component 5, the tolerance has a low significance without new results. Independent QTLs with different functions can be identified for one or more traits. Resistance to different Fusarium spp. seems to be connected; it is species non-specific, but further research is necessary. Their toxin relations are unknown. DI, FDK, and DON should be checked as they serve as the basic data for the risk analysis of cultivars. A better understanding of the multitoxin risk is needed regarding resistance to the main Fusarium spp.; therefore, an updated testing methodology is suggested. This will provide more precise data for research, genetics, and variety registration. In winter and spring wheat, the existing resistance level is very high, close to Sumai 3, and provides much greater food safety combined with sophisticated fungicide preventive control and other practices in commercial production.

RETRACTED: Fusarium development in bread wheat heads under variable humidity conditions

“…It is well noted that when humidity is favorable (Ma et al 2019), infection can occur any time after starting of anthesis in bread wheat (Mesterhazy 2020(Mesterhazy , 2024), but owering is the growth stage most susceptible to Fusarium infection (Miedaner et al 2021). In the present investigation, we used an arti cial infection-environment experiments designed to better understand the role of variable postanthesis moisture patterns on FHB development.…”

“…Gautam and Dill-Macky (2012) found similar ndings for F. graminearum isolates on bread wheat cultivars exhibiting various resistance levels. Therefore, it is hypothesized that there must be other factors besides toxins which participate to isolate aggressiveness (Mesterhazy 2020(Mesterhazy , 2024.…”

“…Fusarium graminearum and F. culmorum are the most prevalent causative agents of FHB; however, F. crookwellense, F. pseudograminearum, F. tricinctum, F. avenaceum or F. cerealis, F. equiseti, F. acuminatum, F. solani, F. langsethiae, F. poae , and F. sporotrichioides have all been reported globally, and have great diversities in mycotoxin production and disease potential within and across species (Toth et al 2020). The pathogenic diversity of Fusarium species has been well known and proven in subsequent investigations (Mesterhazy 2024). Almost all strains they analyzed were pathogenic (Sakr 2022) in spite of high diversity in aggressiveness (Xue et al 2019).…”

“…Heavy dew high humidity, and frequent rainfall that coincide with the duration of crop vulnerability, which expands from anthesis to the soft dough stage of grain growth, promote invasion (Fernando et al 2021). Under these favorable conditions, Fusarium spores germinate and the germ tubes grow into spike tissues (Mesterhazy 2024). Moisture in the form of relative humidity or rainfall, during or shortly after owering, has been associated to higher FHB incidences, Type I and FHB severities, Type II (Rohacik and Hudec 2005).…”

Update on the Basic Understanding of Fusarium graminearum Virulence Factors in Common Wheat Research

“…Previous studies have speculated on the negative correlation between FHB severity, plant height, and anther exclusion. It has been suggested that tall genotypes without anthers could have some level of resistance against FHB [ 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 ]. Recent studies have uncovered the underlying mechanism of glutathione S-transferase (GST) encoded by Fhb7.…”