The fumonisins are a group of

mycotoxin A mycotoxin (from the Greek μύκης , "fungus" and τοξίνη , "toxin") is a toxic secondary metabolite produced by organisms of kingdom Fungi and is capable of causing disease and death in both humans and other animals. The term 'mycotoxin' ...

s derived from ''

Fusarium ''Fusarium'' is a large genus of filamentous fungi, part of a group often referred to as hyphomycetes, widely distributed in soil and associated with plants. Most species are harmless saprobes, and are relatively abundant members of the soil mi ...

'' and their Liseola section. They have strong structural similarity to sphinganine, the backbone precursor of

sphingolipids Sphingolipids are a class of lipids containing a backbone of sphingoid bases, a set of aliphatic amino alcohols that includes sphingosine. They were discovered in brain extracts in the 1870s and were named after the mythological sphinx because ...

. More specifically, it can refer to: * Fumonisin B1 * Fumonisin B2 *

Fumonisin B3 The fumonisins are a group of mycotoxins derived from ''Fusarium'' and their Liseola section. They have strong structural similarity to sphinganine, the backbone precursor of sphingolipids. More specifically, it can refer to: * Fumonisin B1 * Fum ...

Fumonisin B4 Fumonisin B4 (or FB4) is a fumonisin mycotoxin produced mainly by the fungi ''Fusarium proliferatum'', ''Fusarium verticillioides'' (formerly ''Fusarium moniliforme''). Recently FB4 has been detected in fungi ''Aspergillus niger'' and in several ...

The trichothecene (T-2) mycotoxins are a group of over 40 compounds produced by fungi of the genus ''

'', a common grain mold. The estrogenic metabolite,

zearalenone Zearalenone (ZEN), also known as RAL and F-2 mycotoxin, is a potent estrogenic metabolite produced by some ''Fusarium'' and ''Gibberella'' species. Specifically, the ''Gibberella zeae ,'' the fungal species where zearalenone was initially detected, ...

, is also referred to as F-2 toxin. As the fumonisins appear to be non-genotoxic the possibility that they belong to another class of non-genotoxic carcinogens, the peroxisome proliferators, was investigated Genetic engineering is reported as a promising means of detoxifying mycotoxins. This approach may provide innovative solutions to the problem of fumonisin in corn. At least 15 different fumonisins have so far been reported and other minor metabolites have been identified, although most of them have not been shown to occur naturally. In 2015, a unique class of non-aminated fumonisins was reported on grapes infected with ''Aspergillus welwitschiae'', although their toxicities have not yet been established.

References

Mycotoxins {{biochem-stub