Aspergillus korhogoensis, a Novel Aflatoxin Producing Species from the Côte d’Ivoire
Amaranta Carvajal-Campos,
Ama Lethicia Manizan,
Souria Tadrist,
David Koffi Akaki,
Rose Koffi-Nevry,
Geromy G. Moore,
Stephen O. Fapohunda,
Sylviane Bailly,
Didier Montet,
Isabelle P. Oswald,
Sophie Lorber,
Catherine Brabet,
Olivier Puel
Affiliations
Amaranta Carvajal-Campos
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
Ama Lethicia Manizan
Laboratoire de Biotechnologie et Microbiologie des Aliments, UFR des Sciences et Technologie des Aliments, Université Nangui Abrogoua, 02 BP 801 Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
Souria Tadrist
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
David Koffi Akaki
Laboratoire des Procédés Industriels de Synthèse, de l’Environnement et des Energies Nouvelles, Département Génie Chimique et Agro-alimentaire, Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët-Boigny, BP 1313 Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire
Rose Koffi-Nevry
Laboratoire de Biotechnologie et Microbiologie des Aliments, UFR des Sciences et Technologie des Aliments, Université Nangui Abrogoua, 02 BP 801 Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
Geromy G. Moore
Southern Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, New Orleans, LA 70179, USA
Stephen O. Fapohunda
Department of Microbiology, Babcock University, 121003 Ilishan Remo, Nigeria
Sylviane Bailly
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
Didier Montet
Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD)—Département PERSYST—UMR QualiSud, 34398 Montpellier, France
Isabelle P. Oswald
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
Sophie Lorber
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
Catherine Brabet
Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD)—Département PERSYST—UMR QualiSud, 34398 Montpellier, France
Olivier Puel
Toxalim (Research Centre in Food Toxicology), Université de Toulouse, INRA, ENVT, INP-Purpan, UPS, 31027 Toulouse, France
Several strains of a new aflatoxigenic species of Aspergillus, A. korhogoensis, were isolated in the course of a screening study involving species from section Flavi found contaminating peanuts (Arachis hypogaea) and peanut paste in the Côte d’Ivoire. Based on examination of four isolates, this new species is described using a polyphasic approach. A concatenated alignment comprised of nine genes (ITS, benA, cmdA, mcm7, amdS, rpb1, preB, ppgA, and preA) was subjected to phylogenetic analysis, and resulted in all four strains being inferred as a distinct clade. Characterization of mating type for each strain revealed A. korhogoensis as a heterothallic species, since three isolates exhibited a singular MAT1-1 locus and one isolate exhibited a singular MAT1-2 locus. Morphological and physiological characterizations were also performed based on their growth on various types of media. Their respective extrolite profiles were characterized using LC/HRMS, and showed that this new species is capable of producing B- and G-aflatoxins, aspergillic acid, cyclopiazonic acid, aflavarins, and asparasones, as well as other metabolites. Altogether, our results confirm the monophyly of A. korhogoensis, and strengthen its position in the A. flavus clade, as the sister taxon of A. parvisclerotigenus.
