Toxicological characterization of selected secondary fungal metabolites in Norwegian grain
The main goal of the project is to provide a toxicological characterization of selected fungal metabolites other than trichothecenes and to clarify their contribution to the overall toxicity of Fusarium infected cereals. This will strengthen the hazard identification and characterization and thus improve the risk assessment of mycotoxins in cereals.
Project summary
Grains are commonly infected with toxigenic fungi, particularly species of the Fusarium and Alternaria genera. Fusarium fungi are producers of a range of well known mycotoxins as well as less known bioactive metabolites for which little toxicological information exists. Alternaria species produce a range of hardly studied bioactive compounds. Food and feed containing naturally infected cereals have often more pronounced effects in animals than if the corresponding levels of pure trichothecenes are added to the feed. This may be due to the presence of other fungal metabolites. The aim of this project is to provide a toxicological characterization of selected cytotoxic fungal metabolites other than trichothecenes present in Norwegian grains, and to assess their contribution to the toxicity of grains contaminated with toxigenic field fungi. A screening of Alternaria cultures for cytotoxic metabolites will be performed and selected metabolites from Fusarium and Alternaria will be purified for further studies. The selected cytotoxic metabolites will be further studied in a battery of cell tests to provide information about toxicity and cellular targets, and the effects will be compared to those of trichothecenes. A simple bioassay will be used to study the combined effect of selected cytotoxic compounds. The effects of these fungal metabolites on gene expression will be studied by microarray technology and the effects on gene expression will be related to observations from the cellular systems. An in vivo study will be performed to sustain that the in vitro findings also apply to intact organisms. The information generated on mechanisms of action will be used to clarify the role of different metabolites in the toxicity of Fusarium infected grain and thereby strengthen the hazard identification and hazard characterization to improve the risk assessment of mycotoxins in cereals.
Prosjektleder:
Gunnar Sundstøl Eriksen, Seksjon for Toksikologi
Interne prosjektpartnere ved Veterinærinstituttet:
Anita Solhaug, Seksjon for Toksikologi
Arne Holst Jensen, Seksjon for Mykologi
Eksterne nasjonale prosjektpartnere:
Jørn Hole, Folkehelseinstituttet i Oslo
Eksterne internasjonale prosjektpartnere:
James J. Pestka, Michigan State University, USA
