ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Fungal Biol.
Sec. Fungal Secondary Metabolites and Mycotoxins
Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/ffunb.2025.1516557
This article is part of the Research TopicWomen in Fungal Secondary Metabolites and Mycotoxins 2024/2025View all 3 articles
Distribution of Alternaria toxins in Tomatoes Pulp and Peel and their Stability to Heat Treatments
Provisionally accepted
- Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milano, Italy
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The distribution of tenuazonic acid (TeA), alternariol (AOH), alternariol monomethyl ether (AME) and tentoxin (TEN) between pulp and peel was determined in different tomato varieties after artificial inoculation with 3 Alternaria species (A. alternata, A. tenuissima and A. solani) and incubation for 3 weeks. The role of heat treatments, similar to pasteurization, on their stability was also investigated. Unlike AME that was never detected, TeA, AOH and TEN were determined at different levels in pulp and peel. Specifically, AOH remained mainly in the peel, where the inoculation was carried out, while TeA and TEN migrated in the pulp and were also found in the discarded liquid formed during the incubation period. Heat treatments reduced TeA, AOH, and TEN to varying degrees. In particular, TeA level was slightly reduced after the treatment both at 100°C (about 10%) and at 121°C (about 20%), while a reduction of about 30% was achieved after the double heat treatment (treatment at 100°C followed by treatment at 121°C). AOH resulted less stable to heat treatments, showing reduction of around 50% after treatment at 100°C and up to 80% after double heating treatments. TEN was reduced of about 50% only after the combined treatment 100°C + 121°C.
Keywords: Tomato, Alternaria spp., Alternaria toxins, Tenuazonic Acid, Alternariol, tentoxin, heat treatments, early blight
Received: 24 Oct 2024; Accepted: 15 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Giorni, Barato and Bertuzzi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Paola Giorni, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milano, Italy
Terenzio Bertuzzi, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milano, Italy
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