Ear rot susceptibility and mycotoxin contamination of maize hybrids inoculated with Fusarium species under field conditions

The development of new maize hybrids with resistance to Fusarium infection is an effective means of minimizing the risk of mycotoxin contamination. Several maize hybrids have been investigated for Fusarium ear rot and accumulation of fumonisin B1 (FB1), fumonisin B2 (FB2), beauvericin (BEA) and fusaproliferin (FP) after artificial inoculation in the field with toxigenic strains of Fusarium verticillioides and Fusarium proliferatum. The year of inoculation had a significant influence on the disease severity and mycotoxin accumulation in maize kernels. Of all the hybrids tested, only Mona exhibited resistance to ear rot caused by F. verticillioides and produced low levels of fumonisins during three years of experiments. In Fusarium-damaged kernels fumonisin B1, fumonisin B2, beauvericin and fusaproliferin were detected at concentrations much higher (up to 10-20 times) than in healthy-looking kernels. Animal and human exposure to these mycotoxins can be drastically reduced by removing mouldy and visibly damaged kernels from the commodity.