Biomaterial Database

Contamination of bananas with beauvericin and fusaric acid produced by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense. 2013

Chunyu Li, and Cunwu Zuo, and Guiming Deng, and Ruibin Kuang, and Qiaosong Yang, and Chunhua Hu, and Ou Sheng, and Sheng Zhang, and Lijun Ma, and Yuerong Wei, and Jing Yang, and Siwen Liu, and Manosh Kumar Biswas, and Altus Viljoen, and Ganjun Yi

Institution of Fruit Tree Research, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.

BACKGROUND Fusarium wilt, caused by the fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), is one of the most destructive diseases of banana. Toxins produced by Foc have been proposed to play an important role during the pathogenic process. The objectives of this study were to investigate the contamination of banana with toxins produced by Foc, and to elucidate their role in pathogenesis. RESULTS Twenty isolates of Foc representing races 1 and 4 were isolated from diseased bananas in five Chinese provinces. Two toxins were consistently associated with Foc, fusaric acid (FA) and beauvericin (BEA). Cytotoxicity of the two toxins on banana protoplast was determined using the Alamar Blue assay. The virulence of 20 Foc isolates was further tested by inoculating tissue culture banana plantlets, and the contents of toxins determined in banana roots, pseudostems and leaves. Virulence of Foc isolates correlated well with toxin deposition in the host plant. To determine the natural occurrence of the two toxins in banana plants with Fusarium wilt symptoms, samples were collected before harvest from the pseudostems, fruit and leaves from 10 Pisang Awak 'Guangfen #1' and 10 Cavendish 'Brazilian' plants. Fusaric acid and BEA were detected in all the tissues, including the fruits. CONCLUSIONS The current study provides the first investigation of toxins produced by Foc in banana. The toxins produced by Foc, and their levels of contamination of banana fruits, however, were too low to be of concern to human and animal health. Rather, these toxins appear to contribute to the pathogenicity of the fungus during infection of banana plants.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D009183	Mycotoxins	Toxic compounds produced by FUNGI.	Fungal Toxins,Mycotoxin,Toxins, Fungal
D010935	Plant Diseases	Diseases of plants.	Disease, Plant,Diseases, Plant,Plant Disease
D005506	Food Contamination	The presence in food of harmful, unpalatable, or otherwise objectionable foreign substances, e.g. chemicals, microorganisms or diluents, before, during, or after processing or storage.	Food Adulteration,Adulteration, Food,Adulterations, Food,Contamination, Food,Contaminations, Food,Food Adulterations,Food Contaminations
D005516	Food Microbiology	The presence of bacteria, viruses, and fungi in food and food products. This term is not restricted to pathogenic organisms: the presence of various non-pathogenic bacteria and fungi in cheeses and wines, for example, is included in this concept.	Microbiology, Food
D005669	Fusaric Acid	A picolinic acid derivative isolated from various Fusarium species. It has been proposed for a variety of therapeutic applications but is primarily used as a research tool. Its mechanisms of action are poorly understood. It probably inhibits DOPAMINE BETA-HYDROXYLASE, the enzyme that converts dopamine to norepinephrine. It may also have other actions, including the inhibition of cell proliferation and DNA synthesis.	5-Butyl-2-pyridinedicarboxylic Acid,Calcium Fusarate,5 Butyl 2 pyridinedicarboxylic Acid,Acid, 5-Butyl-2-pyridinedicarboxylic,Acid, Fusaric,Fusarate, Calcium
D005670	Fusarium	A mitosporic Hypocreales fungal genus, various species of which are important parasitic pathogens of plants and a variety of vertebrates. Teleomorphs include GIBBERELLA.	Fusariums
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D047630	Depsipeptides	Compounds consisting of chains of AMINO ACIDS alternating with CARBOXYLIC ACIDS via ester and amide linkages. They are commonly cyclized.	Cyclic Depsipeptide,Cyclodepsipeptide,Depsipeptide,Peptolide,Peptolides,Cryptophycins,Cyclodepsipeptides,Depsipeptides, Cyclic,Cyclic Depsipeptides,Depsipeptide, Cyclic
D028521	Musa	A plant genus of the family Musaceae, order Zingiberales, subclass Zingiberidae, class Liliopsida.	Banana,Banana Plant,Banana Plants,Bananas,Musas,Plant, Banana,Plants, Banana