Characterization of mycotoxins produced by two Fusarium species responsible for postharvest rot of banana fruit

Abstract

In an open-air market in southern Italy, we noticed ‘Lady finger’ banana fruit imported from Costa Rica showing a severe rot, whose symptoms consisted of necrotic peel lesions with variable shape and size. Fusarium sacchari and F. proliferatum were consistently isolated from symptomatic fruit. In pathogenicity tests on ‘Lady finger’ banana fruit, F. proliferatum was more virulent than F. sacchari . Quantitative Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometric analysis of secondary metabolites produced by isolates of these two Fusarium species on three different matrices (banana peel, barley and maize kernels) identified 11 mycotoxins. Seven of them (Fusaproliferin, Fumonisins A 1 , Fumonisins A 2 and Fumonisins B 1 , Hydrolysed Fumonisin B 1 , Fusarin C and Moniliformin) were detected in matrices contaminated by F. proliferatum isolates. Fumonisin A 1 was the prevalent mycotoxin in both maize kernels and banana peel, while Fumonisin A 2 prevailed in barley kernels. Similarly, seven mycotoxins (the cyclic hexadepsipeptides Enniatins B 2 , B 3 and B 4 , Fumonisins A 1 and B 2 , Hydrolysed Fumonisin B 1 and Fusarin C) were detected in matrices contaminated by F. sacchari isolates, but they were only in part the same as those produced by F. proliferatum isolates. Fusarin C prevailed in all three matrices colonized by F. sacchari . Fumonisin A 1 was detected exclusively in maize kernels while Enniatins B 3 and B 4, Fumonisin B 2 and Hydrolysed Fumonisin B 1 were detected exclusively in barley kernels. Overall, F. proliferatum produced a higher amount of mycotoxins than F. sacchari . Moreover, in banana peel both species produced a lower number and amount of mycotoxins than in the other two matrices.

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