Zeitschrift für Lebensmittel- und Industriemikrobiologie

Pomegranate Peel Extract, Used as a Natural Supplement in the Ensiling Process, May Help to Reduce the Contamination of Silage with Fungi and Mycotoxins

Abstract

Meifeng Chen*

In Israel, fungal and mycotoxin levels in wheat and maize silage were examined in a study at six animal feed facilities. The fumonisin mycotoxins FB1 and FB2 were found in each and every sample of maize silage examined. Intriguingly, there was no correlation found between the presence of the fungal species that might produce certain mycotoxins and the silages of wheat and maize. In laboratory-prepared maize silage, we conducted additional research into the effects of pomegranate peel extract (PPE) on Fusarium infection and fumonisin biosynthesis. PPE inhibited Fusarium proliferatum's biosynthesis of FB1 and FB2, resulting in a 90 percent decrease in fumonisin production in silage samples compared to untreated controls. Under PPE treatment, qRT-PCR analysis revealed that key genes involved in the fumonisin-biosynthesis pathway were down regulated, corroborating this finding. Our findings suggest promising new applications for natural compounds that have the potential to replace conventionally used synthetic chemicals and reduce fungal and mycotoxin contamination in agricultural foodstuffs.