Fusariotoxins in kernels of winter wheat cultivars field samples collected during 1993 in Poland.

In South-Eastern region of Poland (near Lublin), where frequency of scab (fusariosis) is much higher than in other parts of the country, during harvest of 1993 kernels of 25 winter wheat cultivars were collected. On the basis of morphological studies Fusarium graminearum was found in 42% of investigated samples while other fungi appeared less frequently: F. nivale and F. poae (35%), F. avenaceum (31%) and F. culmorum (12%). Chemical analysis (by HPLC) revealed that the tested cultivars were contaminated with deoxynivalenol (96% of investigated samples), its acetyl derivatives (48%), nivalenol (76%) and moniliformin (28%). The average levels of the metabolite concentrations were as follows: 104; 16; 97; and 63 micrograms/kg, respectively. Co-occurrence of 2 toxic metabolites was found in the following percentage of the positive samples: deoxynivalenol and nivalenol (72%), deoxynivalenol and moniliformin, as well as nivalenol and moniliformin (24%). Usually (71-83% of contaminated samples) mycotoxins were accumulated in the concentration range > or = 10, < 100 micrograms/kg.