Different Resistance to DON versus HT2 + T2 Producers in Nordic Oat Varieties

Over recent decades, the Norwegian cereal industry has had major practical and financial challenges associated with the occurrence of Fusarium head blight (FHB) pathogens and their associated mycotoxins in cereal grains. Deoxynivalenol (DON) is one of the most common Fusarium-mycotoxins in Norwegian oats, however T-2 toxin (T2) and HT-2 toxin (HT2) are also commonly detected. The aim of our study was to rank Nordic spring oat varieties and breeding lines by content of the most commonly occurring Fusarium mycotoxins (DON and HT2 + T2) as well as by the DNA content of their respective producers. We analyzed the content of mycotoxins and DNA of seven fungal species belonging to the FHB disease complex in grains of Nordic oat varieties and breeding lines harvested from oat field trials located in the main cereal cultivating district in South-East Norway in the years 2011–2020. Oat grains harvested from varieties with a high FHB resistance contained on average half the levels of mycotoxins compared with the most susceptible varieties, which implies that choice of variety may indeed impact on mycotoxin risk. The ranking of oat varieties according to HT2 + T2 levels corresponded with the ranking according to the DNA levels of Fusarium langsethiae, but differed from the ranking according to DON and Fusarium graminearum DNA. Separate tests are therefore necessary to determine the resistance towards HT2 + T2 and DON producers in oats. This creates practical challenges for the screening of FHB resistance in oats as today’s screening focuses on resistance to F. graminearum and DON. We identified oat varieties with generally low levels of both mycotoxins and FHB pathogens which should be preferred to mitigate mycotoxin risk in Norwegian oats.

[1]  R. Krska,et al.  Fusarium langsethiae and mycotoxin contamination in oat grain differed with growth stage at inoculation , 2022, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[2]  M. Lillemo,et al.  Weather Patterns Associated with DON Levels in Norwegian Spring Oat Grain: A Functional Data Approach , 2021, Plants.

[3]  A. Khaneghah,et al.  The global overview of the occurrence of mycotoxins in cereals: a three-year survey , 2021 .

[4]  Á. Mesterházy.  Updating the Breeding Philosophy of Wheat to Fusarium Head Blight (FHB): Resistance Components, QTL Identification, and Phenotyping—A Review , 2020, Plants.

[5]  L. Jauhiainen,et al.  Resistance to Fusarium head blight in oats based on analyses of multiple field and greenhouse studies , 2020, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[6]  U. Böcker,et al.  Microdochium majus and other fungal pathogens associated with reduced gluten quality in wheat grain. , 2020, International journal of food microbiology.

[7]  I. S. Hofgaard,et al.  Removal of Small Kernels Reduces the Content of Fusarium Mycotoxins in Oat Grain , 2020, Toxins.

[8]  S. Beuch,et al.  Relationship between genetic variability of flowering traits and Fusarium mycotoxin contamination in oats , 2020 .

[9]  T. Gagkaeva,et al.  Evidence of Microdochium Fungi Associated with Cereal Grains in Russia , 2020, Microorganisms.

[10]  U. Böcker,et al.  Environmental factors associated with glutenin polymer assembly during grain maturation , 2020 .

[11]  T. Kaukoranta,et al.  Contrasting responses of T-2, HT-2 and DON mycotoxins and Fusarium species in oat to climate, weather, tillage and cereal intensity , 2019, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[12]  I. Elbers,et al.  Proficiency test for mycotoxins in oat meal , 2019 .

[13]  Mauritz Åssveen,et al.  Sorter og sortsprøving 2017 , 2018 .

[14]  M. Lillemo,et al.  Screening of Oat Accessions for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance Using Spawn‐Inoculated Field Experiments , 2018 .

[15]  R. Dill‐Macky,et al.  HT-2 and T-2 toxins in Norwegian oat grains related to weather conditions at different growth stages , 2018, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[16]  H. Steinkellner,et al.  Human and animal dietary exposure to T‐2 and HT‐2 toxin , 2017, EFSA journal. European Food Safety Authority.

[17]  R. Dill‐Macky,et al.  DON content in oat grains in Norway related to weather conditions at different growth stages , 2017, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[18]  R. Dill‐Macky,et al.  Inoculum Potential of Fusarium spp. Relates to Tillage and Straw Management in Norwegian Fields of Spring Oats , 2016, Front. Microbiol..

[19]  C. Waalwijk,et al.  Associations between Fusarium species and mycotoxins in oats and spring wheat from farmers’ fields in Norway over a six-year period , 2016 .

[20]  F. Quaranta,et al.  Preliminary Survey on the Co-occurrence of DON and T2+HT2 Toxins in Durum Wheat in Italy , 2015 .

[21]  M. Söderström,et al.  Modelling within-field variations in deoxynivalenol (DON) content in oats using proximal and remote sensing , 2015, Precision Agriculture.

[22]  V. Rossi,et al.  Influence of temperature on infection, growth, and mycotoxin production by Fusarium langsethiae and F. sporotrichioides in durum wheat. , 2014, Food microbiology.

[23]  L. Madden,et al.  Modeling the effects of environmental conditions on HT2 and T2 toxin accumulation in field oat grains. , 2014, Phytopathology.

[24]  M. Back,et al.  Development of Fusarium langsethiae in commercial cereal production , 2013, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[25]  A. Justesen,et al.  Microdochium nivale and Microdochium majus in seed samples of Danish small grain cereals , 2013 .

[26]  S. Klemsdal,et al.  Fusarium langsethiae (Torp and Nirenberg), investigation of alternative infection routes in oats , 2011, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[27]  A. B. Kristoffersen,et al.  Less Fusarium infestation and mycotoxin contamination in organic than in conventional cereals , 2010, Food additives & contaminants. Part A, Chemistry, analysis, control, exposure & risk assessment.

[28]  H. Pettersson,et al.  Real-time PCR detection of Fusarium species in Swedish oats and correlation to T-2 and HT-2 toxin content , 2010 .

[29]  S. Edwards.  Fusarium mycotoxin content of UK organic and conventional oats , 2009, Food additives & contaminants. Part A, Chemistry, analysis, control, exposure & risk assessment.

[30]  K. Messens,et al.  Fusarium head blight (FHB) in Flanders: population diversity, inter-species associations and DON contamination in commercial winter wheat varieties , 2009, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[31]  A. Haikara,et al.  Real-time PCR detection and quantification of Fusarium poae, F. graminearum, F. sporotrichioides and F. langsethiae in cereal grains in Finland and Russia , 2008 .

[32]  W. Eduard,et al.  Real-time PCR detection of toxigenic Fusarium in airborne and settled grain dust and associations with trichothecene mycotoxins. , 2006, Journal of environmental monitoring : JEM.

[33]  H. Nirenberg,et al.  Fusarium langsethiae sp. nov. on cereals in Europe. , 2004, International journal of food microbiology.

[34]  A. Logrieco,et al.  Diversity in metabolite production by Fusarium langsethiae, Fusarium poae, and Fusarium sporotrichioides. , 2004, International journal of food microbiology.

[35]  A. Holst-Jensen,et al.  Phylogenetic analyses of the Fusarium poae, Fusarium sporotrichioides and Fusarium langsethiae species complex based on partial sequences of the translation elongation factor-1 alpha gene. , 2004, International journal of food microbiology.

[36]  G. Kema,et al.  Quantitative Detection of Fusarium Species in Wheat Using TaqMan , 2004, European Journal of Plant Pathology.

[37]  M. Lemmens,et al.  Assessing non-specificity of resistance in wheat to head blight caused by inoculation with European strains of Fusarium culmorum, F. graminearum and F. nivale using a multiplicative model for interaction , 1995, Theoretical and Applied Genetics.

[38]  N. Ames,et al.  Fusarium head blight of oat — current status in western Canada , 2004 .

[39]  E. Skjerve,et al.  The Prevalence and Distribution of Fusarium species in Norwegian Cereals: a Survey , 2003 .

[40]  O. Elen,et al.  The occurrence of deoxynivalenol in Norwegian cereals—differences between years and districts, 1988–1996 , 1997 .

[41]  O. Elen,et al.  Differences Between Barley, Oats and Wheat in the Occurrence of Deoxynivalenol and Other Trichothecenes in Norwegian Grain , 1996 .