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Molecular analysis of Aspergillus section Nigri isolated from onion samples reveals the prevalence of A. welwitschiae

  • Food Microbiology - Research Paper
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Abstract

The aim of this study was to isolate Aspergillus section Nigri from onion samples bought in supermarkets and to analyze the fungal isolates by means of molecular data in order to differentiate A. niger and A. welwitschiae species from the other non-toxigenic species of black aspergilli, and detect genes involved in the biosynthesis of ochratoxin A and fumonisin B2. Aspergillus section Nigri were found in 98% (94/96) of the onion samples. Based on the results of multiplex PCR (performed on 500 randomly selected strains), 97.4% of the Aspergillus section Nigri strains were recognized as A. niger/A. welwitschiae. Around half of them were subjected to partial sequencing of the CaM gene to distinguish one from the other. A total of 97.9% of the isolates were identified as A. welwitschiae and only 2.1% as A. niger. The fum8 gene, involved in fumonisin B2 biosynthesis, was found in 36% of A. welwitschiae isolates, but radH and pks genes, involved in ochratoxin A biosynthesis, were found in only 2.8%. The presence/absence of fum8 gene in the A. welwitschiae genome is closely associated with ability/inability of the isolates to produce fumonisin in vitro. Based on these results, we suggest that in-depth studies are conducted to investigate the presence of fumonisins in onion bulbs.

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Funding

This study was financed by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) (Project 2013/05414-8), Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) (F.M. Pelisson, grant Code 001), and the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPQ) (M. H. P. Fungaro, grant #310970/2015-6).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Londrina State University, Londrina, PR, Brazil

    Fernanda Pelisson Massi, Rafaella Liviero Barbosa, Daniele Sartori, Larissa Ferrranti & Maria Helena Pelegrinelli Fungaro

  2. Food Technology Institute – ITAL, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Beatriz Thie Iamanaka & Marta Hiromi Taniwaki

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  1. Fernanda Pelisson Massi
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  2. Beatriz Thie Iamanaka
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  3. Rafaella Liviero Barbosa
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  7. Maria Helena Pelegrinelli Fungaro
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Correspondence to Maria Helena Pelegrinelli Fungaro.

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Highlights

• Aspergillus welwitschiae is very frequently found in onions marketed in Brazil.

• An essential gene involved in fumonisin biosynthesis (fum8) is present in 36% of Aspergillus welwitschiae strains.

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Massi, F.P., Iamanaka, B.T., Barbosa, R.L. et al. Molecular analysis of Aspergillus section Nigri isolated from onion samples reveals the prevalence of A. welwitschiae. Braz J Microbiol 52, 387–392 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-020-00390-2

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