TOXICITY OF CORN CULTURE MATERIAL OF FUSARIUM-PROLIFERATUM M-7176 ANDNUTRITIONAL INTERVENTION IN CHICKS

The toxicity of Fusarium proliferatum M-7176 cultured on corn (FPC) an d nutritional intervention were investigated in baby chicks (New Hamps hire x Single Comb White Leghorn) in three 2-wk feeding experiments. I n Experiment 1, 30% FPC decreased weight gain (P < .05) and increased relative heart weight (RHW) (P < .01). Experiment 2 included a 2 x 2 f actorial arrangement of FPC (0 or 30%) and Se (0 or 5 mg/kg) and two d etached treatments of Se (2.5 mg/kg) or thiamin (B1, 25 mg/kg) supplem entations to 30% FPC. Only B1 was inhibitory to the toxic effects of F PC on weight gain, feed efficiency, and RHW (P < .05). Experiment 3 in cluded 2 x 2 factorial arrangement between FPC (0 or 30%) and Se (0 or 4 mg/kg), or B1 (0 or 50 mg/kg), or vitamin E (0 or 50 IU/kg) and add itional supplementations of Se (2 mg/kg), B1 (10 or 25 mg/kg), or E (1 0 IU/kg) to 30% FPC. A new batch of FPC was used and it caused 36% mor tality. Vitamin E did not interact with FPC, but SE interacted with FP C only on RHW (P < .01). Thiamin interacted with FPC on all measured v ariables with significance ranging from P < .1 to P < .01. Supplementa tion of B1 as low as 10 mg/kg was inhibitory to some toxic effects of FPC. However, B1 as high as 50 mg/kg did not completely negate the car diotoxicity. Water-extractable B1 in FPC diets was 13 to 27% of the co ntrol diets. Water extract of FPC reduced B1 recovery from a standard solution by 40%. The anti-thiamin factor was heat-sensitive. Both fumo nisins and moniliformin were present in FPC. However, the results indi cate that the anti-thiamin factor is also a major toxic factor of F. p roliferatum M-7176.