Standardization of an indirect PTA-ELISA for detection ofFusarium spp. in infected grains.

Plant pathogenic fungi of the genusFusarium cause agriculturally important diseases of small grain cereals and maize. Especially the contamination of grains with the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON) is harmful for animals and humans. For quantification of the severity ofFusarium head blight (FHB) in resistance evaluation and selection of cereals a fast, economical and reliable method is essential. Immunological methods appear to be particularly suitable for such an assessment. The results demonstrate that a selected antiserum was appropriate for the detection ofFusarium-exoantigens (ExoAg) in cereal grains by an indirect ELISA-format, although a discrimination between variousFusarium-species was not possible. The polyclonal antibody detection system was optimized for different parameters and a standard test protocol was elaborated.