Effects of Fusarium moniliforme and corn associated with equine leukoencephalomalacia on rat neurotransmitters and metabolites.

This research paper investigates the effects of Fusarium moniliforme (FM), a fungus associated with a specific condition called equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM) in horses and toxicity in rat livers, on rat neurotransmitters and metabolites. The study found that rats fed with corn infected with FM showed an increase in certain brain chemicals and a possible metabolic disorder related to these chemical components.

Study Material and Methods

• The researchers used rats to observe the neurochemical effects of corn infected with FM – both a strain naturally associated with ELEM in horses, and an established FM strain MRC 826.
• They compared these with controls fed commercial (presumably non-FM infected) corn.
• The corn consumed by the rats was also supplemented with FM cultures for certain subsets of the test subjects.

Study Findings

• Rats fed with ELEM-FM corn demonstrated an increase in the brain metabolite 5-HIAA (a major by-product of the neurotransmitter serotonin)
• There was an increase in the ratio of 5-HIAA/5-HT (serotonin), suggesting a disruption in serotonin metabolism or elimination.
• In addition, these rats showed reduced body weights and increased brain to body weight ratios compared to the control group.
• The results were even stronger in rats fed a diet supplemented with cultured FM (16% and 20% FM-chow diets), who showed not only increased levels of brain 5-HT and 5-HIAA, but also higher 5-HIAA/5-HT ratios, further reduced body weights, and expanded brain to body weight ratios.

Conclusions and Implications

• The research presents a strong correlation between feeding rats FM-infected corn and observed metabolic disruptions related to serotonin, a major neurotransmitter.
• The results suggest a potential dysfunction of serotonin metabolism or its breakdown elimination in the brain due to exposure to FM.
• The research also reinforces earlier associations between FM and liver damage, given the observed occurrences of microscopic liver lesions in the FM-fed rats.

Future Directions

• These findings provide a foundation for further exploration of the impacts of FM on neurochemical processes, which could have important implications for animal health, particularly horses, but also potentially for human health.
• It also raises questions about the safety of corn (or other crops) infected with FM, and supports ongoing efforts to manage and control this fungus in agriculture.