Gibberella zeae, a major cause of cereal scab, may be divided into two chemotypes based on production of the trichothecenes deoxynivalenol (DON) and nivalenol (NIV). We cloned and sequenced the gene cluster for trichothecene biosynthesis from each chemotype. G. zeae H-11 is a DON producer isolated from corn, and G. zeae 88-1 is a NIV producer from barley. We sequenced a 23-kb gene cluster from ...

Gibberella zeae, a major cause of cereal scab, can be divided into two chemotypes based on production of the 8-ketotrichothecenes deoxynivalenol (DON) and nivalenol (NIV). We cloned and sequenced a Tri13 homolog from each chemotype. The Tri13 from a NIV chemotype strain (88-1) is located in the trichothecene gene cluster and carries an open reading frame similar to that of Fusarium sporotrichio...

Fusarium species can produce mycotoxins, which can contaminate cereal-based food producing adverse effects for human and animal health. In recent years, the importance of Fusarium poae has increased within the Fusarium head blight complex. Fusarium poae is known to produce trichothecenes, especially nivalenol, a potent mycotoxin able to cause a variety of toxic effects. In this study, a specifi...

The elucidation of the biochemical pathway of trichothecene production by Fusarium species has been the focus of our laboratory for a number of years. The complex pathway begins with the sesquiterpene hydrocarbon trichodiene and consists of multiple oxygenation, cyclization, and esterification steps. As is found in a number of other organisms that produce toxic/antibiotic compounds, many of the...

Fusarium head blight is a disease caused by a complex of Fusarium species. F. poae is omnipresent throughout Europe in spite of its low virulence. In this study, we assessed a geographically diverse collection of F. poae isolates for its genetic diversity using AFLP (Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism). Furthermore, studying the mating type locus and chromosomal insertions, we identified ha...

Monitoring changes in the prevalence of Fusarium species and toxin production is an important tool for integrated control head blight (FHB). However, methods high-throughput screening populations have been developed using isolates with limited geographic origins. In this study, we used species- trichothecene-specific primers to monitor F. graminearum complex (FGSC) originating from Serbia. We a...

Hundred Fusarium culmorum strains, isolated from freshly harvested maize grain samples from Southern parts of India, were incubated in czapek-dox medium and analyzed for trichothecene (DON/NIV) production. The mPCR assay was standardized targeting trichothecene metabolic pathway genes viz., Tri6, Tri7, Tri13 for detection of trichothecene (DON/NIV) chemotypes and rDNA gene for specific detectio...