Phytotoxicity of Fumonisin B1on Weed and Crop Species

Abstract

Fumonisin B1(FB1) sprayed on intact jimsonweed plants at 10 to 200 μg ml–1caused chlorosis and necrosis on three- to four-leaf plants and reduced their height and biomass. Excised leaves of jimsonweed were necrotic on both surfaces after treatment with FB1at 10 to 200 μg ml–1. The degree of damage increased with the concentration of FB1. The minimum amount of FB1that damaged excised leaves was 0.05 μg. The symptoms of toxicity on sensitive plants varied with concentration of FB1. Symptoms observed included: chlorosis (creeping cucumber), necrosis (jimsonweed and common sunflower), black leaf lesions (sicklepod), curl of tissues (soybean), stunting, defoliation (hemp sesbania and northern jointvetch), and death (prickly sida, spurred anoda, northern jointvetch, and jimsonweed). Monocots (barley, bermudagrass, corn, johnsongrass, rice, sorghum, and wheat) were not visibly affected by FB1. This is the first evidence of the phytotoxic properties of fumonisin B1against a wide variety of weeds and crop cultivars.