Application of monoclonal antibodies in quantifying fungal growth dynamics during aerobic spoilage of silage

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Le Cocq, K., Brown, B., Hodgson, C. J., McFadzean, J., Horrocks, C. A., Lee, M. R. F. and Davies, D. 2020. Application of monoclonal antibodies in quantifying fungal growth dynamics during aerobic spoilage of silage. Microbial Biotechnology. 13 (4), pp. 1054-1065. https://doi.org/10.1111/1751-7915.13552

AuthorsLe Cocq, K., Brown, B., Hodgson, C. J., McFadzean, J., Horrocks, C. A., Lee, M. R. F. and Davies, D.
Abstract

Proliferation of filamentous fungi following ingress of oxygen to silage is an important cause of dry matter losses, resulting in significant waste. In addition, the production of mycotoxins by some filamentous fungi pose a risk to animal health through mycotoxicosis. Quantitative assessment of fungal growth in silage, through measurement of ergosterol content, colony forming units or temperature increase are limiting in representing fungal growth dynamics during aerobic spoilage due to being deficient in either representing fungal biomass or being able to identify specific genera. Here, we conducted a controlled environment aerobic exposure experiment to test the efficacy of a monoclonal antibody-based enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect the proliferation of fungal biomass in six silage samples. We compared this to temperature which has been traditionally deployed in such experiments and on-farm to detect aerobic deterioration. In addition, we quantified ergosterol, a second marker of fungal biomass. At 8 d post aerobic exposure, the ergosterol and ELISA methods indicated an increase in fungal biomass in one of the samples with a temperature increase observed after 16 d. A comparison of the methods with Pearson’s correlation coefficient showed a positive association between temperature and ergosterol and both markers of fungal biomass. This work indicates that the technology has potential to be used as an indicator of microbial degradation in preserved forage. Consequently, if developed as an on farm technique this could inform forage management decisions made by farmers, with the goal of decreasing dry matter losses, improving resource and nutrient efficiency and reducing risks to animal health.

KeywordsELISA; Silage; Fungi; Aerobic spoilage; Monoclonal antibody
Year of Publication2020
JournalMicrobial Biotechnology
Journal citation13 (4), pp. 1054-1065
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/1751-7915.13552
Web address (URL)http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1751-7915.13552/abstract
Open accessPublished as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
FunderBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Funder project or codeS2N - Soil to Nutrition - Work package 2 (WP2) - Adaptive management systems for improved efficiency and nutritional quality
Publisher's version
Accepted author manuscript
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online10 Mar 2020
Publication process dates
Accepted20 Feb 2020
PublisherWiley
Other fileApplication%20of%20monoclonal%20antibodies%20in%20quantifying%20fungal%20growth%20dynamics%20during%20aerobic%20spoilage%20of%20silage.pdf
ISSN1751-7915

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