Pest Management and Ochratoxin A Contamination in Grapes: A Review
Letizia Mondani,
Roberta Palumbo,
Dimitrios Tsitsigiannis,
Dionysios Perdikis,
Emanuele Mazzoni,
Paola Battilani
Affiliations
Letizia Mondani
Department of Sustainable Crop Production (DI.PRO.VE.S.), Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29100 Piacenza, Italy
Roberta Palumbo
Department of Sustainable Crop Production (DI.PRO.VE.S.), Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29100 Piacenza, Italy
Dimitrios Tsitsigiannis
School of Plant Sciences, Department of Crop Science, Laboratory of Plant Pathology, Agricultural University of Athens, Iera Odos 75, 11855 Athens, Greece
Dionysios Perdikis
School of Plant Sciences, Department of Crop Science, Laboratory of Agricultural Zoology and Entomology, Agricultural University of Athens, Iera Odos 75, 11855 Athens, Greece
Emanuele Mazzoni
Department of Sustainable Crop Production (DI.PRO.VE.S.), Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29100 Piacenza, Italy
Paola Battilani
Department of Sustainable Crop Production (DI.PRO.VE.S.), Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29100 Piacenza, Italy
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is the most toxic member of ochratoxins, a group of toxic secondary metabolites produced by fungi. The most relevant species involved in OTA production in grapes is Aspergillus carbonarius. Berry infection by A. carbonarius is enhanced by damage to the skin caused by abiotic and biotic factors. Insect pests play a major role in European vineyards, and Lepidopteran species such as the European grapevine moth Lobesia botrana are undoubtedly crucial. New scenarios are also emerging due to the introduction and spread of allochthonous pests as well as climate change. Such pests may be involved in the dissemination of OTA producing fungi even if confirmation is still lacking and further studies are needed. An OTA predicting model is available, but it should be integrated with models aimed at forecasting L. botrana phenology and demography in order to improve model reliability.
