Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Community structure of the Fusarium complex on wheat seed in Italy

  • Published:
European Journal of Plant Pathology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The objective was to quantitatively document the pathogen community associated with the Fusarium head blight complex in Italian wheat. The observational study was prompted by increased concerns about mycotoxin contamination coupled with a surge in organically grown wheat. During the three-year survey (2004 to 2006) in three geopolitically defined zones (north, centre, south), seedborne pathogens associated with Fusarium head blight in organic bread and durum wheat were assayed by the freezing blotter method and identified to species based on morphological features. The four most abundant species overall, in order from highest to lowest, were Fusarium poae, Microdochium nivale, F. verticillioides and F. graminearum. Environment was more influential than wheat cultivar in determining the variances in seed infestation counts. Counts of infested seeds were higher (and more variable) in the north and centre zones than in the south zone. The odds of observing any seed infestation was significantly higher in both the north and centre zones (compared with the south zone) for F. avenaceum, F. graminearum, F. poae, and M. nivale in durum wheat. There was a significant nonlinear relationship between seed infestation prevalence and incidence, with evident separation of species along the prevalence-incidence curve. Species co occurrence was observed, but associations shifted with wheat type, over years, and among zones. F. poae was not positively associated with any other species.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bernhoft, A., Clasen, P.-E., Kristoffersen, A. B., & Torp, M.(2010). Less Fusarium infestation and mycotoxin contamination in organic than in conventional cereals. Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A, 27, 842–852.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bottalico, A., & Perrone, G. (2002). Toxigenic Fusarium species and mycotoxins associated with head blight in small-grain cereals in Europe. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 108, 611–624.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chartrand, G. (1985). Introductory graph theory. New York: Dover.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, S. G. (2009). Fusarium mycotoxin content of UK organic and conventional wheat. Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A, 26, 496–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, S. G., Barrier-Guillot, B., Clasen, P.-E., Hietaniemi, V., & Pettersson, H. (2009). Emerging issues of HT-2 and T-2 toxins in European cereal production. World Mycotoxin Journal, 2, 173–179.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, W., Mulvey, E. P., & Shaw, E. C. (1995). Regression analyses of counts and rates: Poisson, overdispersed Poisson, and negative binomial models. Psychological Bulletin, 118, 392–404.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Goswami, R. S., & Kistler, H. C. (2004). Heading for a disaster: Fusarium graminearum on cereal crops. Molecular Plant Pathology, 5, 515–525.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hilbe, J. (2009). Logistic regression models. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Infantino, A., Pucci, N., Conca, G., & Santori, A. (2007). First report of Fusarium langsethiae on durum wheat kernels in Italy. Plant Disease, 91, 1362–1362.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Isebaert, S., De Saeger, S., Devreese, R., Verhoeven, R., Maene, P., Heremans, B., et al. (2009). Mycotoxin-producing Fusarium species occurring in winter wheat in Belgium (Flanders) during 2002–2005. Journal of Phytopathology, 157, 108–116.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Klix, M. B., Beyer, M., & Verreet, J. A. (2008). Effects of cultivar, agronomic practices, geographic location, and meteorological conditions on the composition of selected Fusarium species on wheat heads. Canadian Journal of Plant Pathology, 30, 46–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kosiak, B., Torp, M., Skjerve, E., & Thrane, U. (2003). The prevalence and distribution of Fusarium species in Norwegian cereals: A survey. Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica Section B-Soil and Plant Science, 53, 168–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Legendre, P. (2005). Species associations: The Kendall coefficient of concordance revisited. Journal of Agricultural, Biological, and Environmental Statistics, 10, 226–245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Limonard, T. (1966). A modified blotter test for seed health. Netherlands Journal of Plant Pathology, 72, 319–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Madden, L. V., & Hughes, G. (1999). An effective sample size for predicting plant disease incidence in a spatial hierarchy. Phytopathology, 89, 770–781.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Migheli, Q., Balmas, V., Komon-Zelazowska, M., Scherm, B., Fiori, S., Kopchinskiy, A. G., et al. (2009). Soils of a Mediterranean hot spot of biodiversity and endemism (Sardinia, Tyrrhenian Islands) are inhabited by pan-European, invasive species of Hypocrea/Trichoderma. Environmental Microbiology, 11, 35–46.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, P., Tousson, T. A., & Marasas, W. F. (1983). Fusarium species: An illustrated manual for identification. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Donnell, K., Ward, T. J., Geiser, D. M., Kistler, H. C., & Aoki, T. (2004). Genealogical concordance between the mating type locus and seven other nuclear genes supports formal recognition of nine phylogenetically distinct species within the Fusarium graminearum clade. Fungal Genetics and Biology, 41, 600–623.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Oerke, E. C., Meier, A., Dehne, H. W., Sulyok, M., Krska, R., & Steiner, U. (2010). Spatial variability of fusarium head blight pathogens and associated mycotoxins in wheat crops. Plant Pathology, 59, 671–682.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Oksanen, J., Guillaume Blanchet, F., Kindt, R., Legendre, P., O’Hara, R. G., Simpson, G. L., Solymos, P., Stevens, M. H. H. & Wagner, H. (2010). vegan: Community Ecology Package. R package version 1.17-0. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=vegan.

  • Osborne, L. E., & Stein, J. M. (2007). Epidemiology of Fusarium head blight on small-grain cereals. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 119, 103–108.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pancaldi, D., Tonti, S., Prodi, A., Salomoni, D., Dal Prà, M., Nipoti, P., et al. (2010). Survey of the main causal agents of fusarium head blight of durum wheat around Bologna, northern Italy. Phytopathologia Mediterranea, 49, 258–266.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parry, D. W., Jenkinson, P., & McLeod, L. (1995). Fusarium ear blight (scab) in small grain cereals—a review. Plant Pathology, 44, 207–238.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Piepho, H. P. (1999). Stability analysis using the SAS system. Agronomy Journal, 91, 154–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prodi, A., Tonti, S., Nipoti, P., Pancaldi, D., & Pisi, A. (2009). Identification of deoxynivalenol and nivalenol producing chemotypes of Fusarium graminearum isolates from durum wheat in a restricted area of Northern Italy. Journal of Plant Pathology, 91, 727–731.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ryu, J. C., Ohtsubo, K., Izumiyama, N., Nakamura, K., Tanaka, T., Yamamura, H., et al. (1988). The acute and chronic toxicities of nivalenol in mice. Fundamental and Applied Toxicology, 11, 38–47.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shah, D. A., Pucci, N., & Infantino, A. (2005). Regional and varietal differences in the risk of wheat seed infection by fungal species associated with fusarium head blight in Italy. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 112, 13–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, D. R., Weston, G. E., Turner, J. A., Jennings, P., & Nicholson, P. (2001). Differential control of head blight pathogens of wheat by fungicides and consequences for mycotoxin contamination of grain. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 107, 421–431.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Somma, S., Alvarez, C., Ricci, V., Ferracane, L., Ritieni, A., Logrieco, A., et al. (2010). Trichothecene and beauvericin mycotoxin production and genetic variability in Fusarium poae isolated from wheat kernels from northern Italy. Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A, 27, 729–737.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stenglein, S. A. (2009). Fusarium poae: A pathogen that needs more attention. Journal of Plant Pathology, 91, 25–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thrane, U., Adler, A., Clasen, P., Galvano, F., Langseth, W., Lew, H., et al. (2004). Diversity in metabolite production by Fusarium langsethiae, Fusarium poae, and Fusarium sporotrichioides. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 95, 257–266.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Torp, M., & Nirenberg, H. I. (2004). Fusarium langsethiae sp. nov. on cereals in Europe. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 95, 247–256.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • van der Fels-Klerx, H. J., & Stratakou, I. (2010). T-2 toxin and HT-2 toxin in grain and grain-based commodities in Europe: Occurrence, factors affecting occurrence, co-occurrence and toxicological effects. World Mycotoxin Journal, 3, 349–367.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Virk, D. S., Pandit, D. B., Sufian, M. A., Ahmed, F., Siddique, M. A. B., Samad, M. A., et al. (2009). REML is an effective analysis for mixed modelling of unbalanced on-farm varietal trials. Experimental Agriculture, 45, 77–91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waalwijk, C., Kastelein, P., de Vries, I., Kerenyi, Z., van der Lee, T., Hesselink, T., et al. (2003). Major changes in Fusarium spp. in wheat in the Netherlands. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 109, 743–754.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whittaker, R. H. (1962). Classification of natural communities. The Botanical Review, 28, 1–239.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu, X.-M., & Nicholson, P. (2009). Community ecology of fungal pathogens causing wheat head blight. Annual Review of Phytopathology, 47, 83–103.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Xu, X.-M., Parry, D. W., Nicholson, P., Thomsett, M. A., Simpson, D., Edwards, S. G., et al. (2005). Predominance and association of pathogenic fungi causing Fusarium ear blight in wheat in four European countries. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 112, 143–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu, X.-M., Nicholson, P., Thomsett, M. A., Simpson, D., Cooke, B. M., Doohan, F. M., et al. (2008a). Relationship between the fungal complex causing Fusarium head blight of wheat and environmental conditions. Phytopathology, 98, 69–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu, X.-M., Parry, D. W., Nicholson, P., Thomsett, M. A., Simpson, D., Edwards, S. G., et al. (2008b). Within-field variability of Fusarium head blight pathogens and their associated mycotoxins. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 120, 21–34.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yli-Mattila, T. (2010). Ecology and evolution of toxigenic Fusarium species in cereals in Northern Europe and Asia. Journal of Plant Pathology, 92, 7–18.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was funded by a grant from the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry policies (BIOCER program).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro di Ricerca per la Paologia Vegetale (CRA-PAV), Via C. G. Bertero 22, I-00156, Rome, Italy

    A. Infantino & A. Santori

  2. 4662 Vrooman Drive, Lewiston, NY, 14092, USA

    D. A. Shah

Authors
  1. A. Infantino
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. A. Santori
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. D. A. Shah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. A. Shah.

Electronic supplementary materials

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

ESM

(PDF 117 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Infantino, A., Santori, A. & Shah, D.A. Community structure of the Fusarium complex on wheat seed in Italy. Eur J Plant Pathol 132, 499–510 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-011-9892-1

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-011-9892-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation