ISSN 2736-1756
Advanced Journal of Microbiology Research ISSN 2241-9837 Vol. 14 (4), pp. 001-010, April, 2020. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Study of most prevalent wheat seed-borne mycoflora and its effect on seed nutritional value
Abdul Rehman1, Kishwar Sultana1, Nisar Minhas3, Muhammad Gulfraz1, Ghazala Kaukab Raja1* and Zahid Anwar2
1Department of Biochemistry, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
2Department of Biochemistry Nawaz Sharif Medical College, University of Gujarat, Pakistan.
3Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
Accepted 25 May, 2019
Abstract
To study most prevalent wheat seed-borne mycoflora and its effect on the nutritional value, freshly harvested three and six months old stored wheat grains were collected from various parts of Pakistan. For isolation of seed-borne fungi, agar plate method was found more effective as compared to standard blotter method. Alternaria alternata was found to be the most prevalent fungus. Chemical analysis of seeds clearly showed a decrease in the carbohydrate, fats and ash contents of stored wheat grains as compared to the freshly harvested seeds with no effect on total proteins. The growth of A. alternata on seeds during storage might have resulted in low nutritional contents.
Key words: Mycoflora, Alternaria alternata, seed-borne fungi, post-harvest storage, pathogens.