MYCOTOXIN PRODUCTION BY FUSARIUM SPECIES ISOLATED FROM BANANAS

The ability of Fusarium species isolated from bananas to produce mycot oxins was studied with 66 isolates of the following species: F. semite ctum var. majus (8 isolates), F. camptoceras (3 isolates), a Fusarium sp, (3 isolates), F. moniliforme (16 isolates), F. proliferatum (9 iso lates), F. subglutinans (3 isolates), F. solani (3 isolates), F. oxysp orum (5 isolates), F. graminearum (7 isolates), F. dimerum (3 isolates ), F. acuminatum (3 isolates), and F. equiseti (3 isolates). All isola tes were cultured on autoclaved corn grains, Their toxicity to Artemia salina L. larvae was examined. Some of the toxic effects observed aro se from the production of known mycotoxins that were determined by thi n-layer chromatography, gas chromatography, or high-performance liquid chromatography. All F. camptoceras and Fusarium sp. isolates proved t oxic to A. salina larvae; however, no specific toxic metabolites could be identified. This was also the case with eight isolates off. monili forme and three off. proliferatum. The following mycotoxins were encou ntered in the corn culture extracts: fumonisin B-1 (40 to 2,900 mu g/g ), fumonisin B-2 (150 to 320 mu g/g), moniliformin (10 to 1,670 mu g/g ), zearalenone (5 to 470 mu g/g), alpha-zearalenol (5 to 10 mu g/g), d eoxynivalenol (8 to 35 mu g/g), 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol (5 to 10 mu g/g ), neosolaniol (50 to 180 mu g/g), and T-2 tetraol (5 to 15 mu g/g). B ased on the results, additional compounds produced by the fungal isola tes may play prominent roles in the toxic effects on larvae observed. This is the first reported study on the mycotoxin-producing abilities of Fusarium species that contaminate bananas.