CORRELATION OF MONILIFORMIN, BUT NOT FUMONISIN B-1 LEVELS, IN CULTUREMATERIALS OF FUSARIUM ISOLATES TO ACUTE DEATH IN DUCKLINGS

Five isolates of Fusarium moniliforme and two isolates Fusarium prolif eratum of the Section Liseola were each fermented on rice for 21 d at 25 C. Each Fusarium-fermented rice, when dried and mixed into a poultr y diet (10% by weight), caused a varied degree of acute mortality in b aby Pekin ducklings. The acute (death in less than 48 h) mortality cor related significantly only to the amount of moniliformin in fermented rice, thus in the diet, but not to the amount of fumonisin B-1 in ferm ented rice. This correlation of moniliformin concentration and noncorr elation of fumonisin B-1 concentrations to acute toxicity were confirm ed by duckling assay using diets containing these purified mycotoxins.