Research Article Received: 5 November 2013 Revised: 22 May 2014 Accepted article published: 6 June 2014 Published online in Wiley Online Library: (wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI 10.1002/jsfa.6772 Fusarium species, chemotype characterisation and trichothecene contamination of durum and soft wheat in an area of central Italy Lorenzo Covarelli, a* Giovanni Beccari, a Antonio Prodi, b Silvia Generotti, c Federico Etruschi, a,c Cristina Juan, c Emilia Ferrer c and Jordi Mañes c Abstract BACKGROUND: Fusarium head blight (FHB) of wheat is an important disease causing yield losses and mycotoxin contamination. The aim of the work was to detect and characterise trichothecene producing Fusarium species in durum and soft wheat cultivated in an area of central Italy in 2009 and 2010 and to determine trichothecene contamination by LC-MS/MS in the grain. RESULTS: F. graminearum s. str. was the most frequent species. In 2009, the occurrence of F. avenaceum and F. poae was higher than in 2010. Among F. graminearum strains, the 15-acetyl deoxynivalenol (15-ADON) chemotype could be found more frequently, followed by nivalenol (NIV) and 3-ADON chemotypes, while all F. culmorum isolates belonged to the 3-ADON chemotype. All F. poae strains were NIV chemotypes. In vitro trichothecene production confirmed molecular characterisation. Durum wheat was characterised by a higher average DON contamination with respect to soft wheat, NIV was always detected at appreciable levels while type-A trichothecenes were mostly found in durum wheat samples in 2009 with 6% of samples exceeding the contamination level recently recommended by the European Union. CONCLUSION: Climatic conditions were confirmed to be predominant factors influencing mycotoxigenic species composition and mycotoxin contaminations. However, NIV contamination was found to occur irrespective of climatic conditions, suggesting that it may often represent an under-estimated risk to be further investigated. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry Keywords: deoxynivalenol; nivalenol; mycotoxins; Fusarium; chemotypes; LC-MS/MS INTRODUCTION Several Fusarium species are able to cause Fusarium head blight (FHB) of wheat, one of the most important fungal diseases worldwide. 1 The main consequences of FHB are yield reduction and kernel contamination by mycotoxins, toxic compounds pro- duced by most of FHB causal agents during infection. Mycotoxin contamination can occur in both unprocessed and processed wheat, representing a risk for human and animal health. 2 FHB is a complex disease that may be caused by more than 16 Fusarium species 3 but, globally, Fusarium graminearum and F. culmorum are considered its main causal agents. 4,5 However, the spectrum of Fusarium species involved in the disease varies at a local or regional level depending on weather conditions especially during wheat anthesis. 6,7 In Europe, in addition to F. graminearum and F. culmorum, F. avenaceum and F. poae may also be frequently found to cause FHB infections 8 and changes in the relative com- position of the different species have been demonstrated to occur throughout the years. 8,9 In Italy, FHB has been permanently present since 1995, especially in the northern–central regions, with variable incidence in relation to the year, cultivation area and wheat variety. 10 The composition of FHB causal species in Italy is similar to that reported in other south European countries, with F. graminearum s. str. (previous lineage 7) and F. culmorum representing the main agents and F. poae as a species recognised as a prominent member of the FHB complex since the year 2000. 10 – 13 During the infection process, Fusarium species are able to biosynthesise different mycotoxins and, among them, tri- chothecenes are considered to be the most important ones. 14 Trichothecene mycotoxins are sesquiterpenoids that are impli- cated in fungal virulence. 15 They are phytotoxic 16 and may accu- mulate in the kernels, rendering the grain unsuitable for human and animal consumption. 17 In fact, the ingestion of contaminated grain can cause intestinal irritation in mammals, feed refusal in livestock 18 as well as immunological problems, vomiting, skin dermatitis, haemorrhagic lesions and mycotoxicoses in humans. 17 ∗ Correspondence to: Lorenzo Covarelli, Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy. E-mail: lorenzo.covarelli@unipg.it a Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy b Department of Agricultural Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, Viale G. Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, Italy c Laboratory of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Valencia, Av. Vicent Andrés Estellés s/n, 46100 Burjassot, València, Spain J Sci Food Agric (2014) www.soci.org © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry