Abstract
Maize infection by Aspergillus flavus Link and subsequent aflatoxin contamination as affected by insect damage to maize ears before harvest was studied with surveys in farmers' fields and in a field trial in the Republic of Benin, West Africa. The most important pest species was the lepidopteran earborer Mussidia nigrivenella Ragonot. Percentage of grain infected by A. flavus and of samples contaminated with aflatoxin, as well as the mean aflatoxin content of samples, increased with increasing borer damage. Ears with <2% insect damage had an average of 11.7 and 43.6 ppb of aflatoxin in 1994 and 1995, respectively. Ears in the highest damage class (i.e., > 10%damage) had an average aflatoxin of 514.6 and 388.2 ppb in 1994 and 1995, respectively. In 1994 only, coleopteran species such as Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky and Carpophilus sp. significantly increased levels of aflatoxin in grain samples. In a field trial using M. nigrivenella infestation and A. flavus inoculation treatments, the presence of the insect feeding resulted in increased kernel infection and aflatoxin contamination. Artificial infestation with M. nigrivenella larvae increased aflatoxin content of maize by an average of 45 ppb, whereas inoculation with A. flavus spores increased the toxin level by 517 ppb. The significant interaction between infestation and inoculation indicated that higher levels of aflatoxin BI were found when the fungus was associated with borers than with the fungus alone. M. nigrivenlla was the major field pest connected with A. flavus infection and subsequent aflatoxin production in preharvest maize in Benin.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record, shown for indexing and research. Copyright remains with the authors or the publisher. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 13
Claim · model-written summary
Mussidia nigrivenella was the most important pest species.
- Interactor
- Mussidia nigrivenella RagonotMussidia nigrivenellae0pest
- Outcome
- most important pest speciese0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“The most important pest species was the lepidopteran earborer Mussidia nigrivenella Ragonot.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Greater borer damage was associated with increased fungal grain infection, contaminated sample percentage and mean aflatoxin content.
- Treatment
- borer damagee0
- Interactor
- A. flavus
Aspergillus flavuse0pathogen - Outcome
- Percentage of grain infected by A. flavus and of samples contaminated with aflatoxin, as well as the mean aflatoxin content of samplese0
- Direction
- increasede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“Percentage of grain infected by A. flavus and of samples contaminated with aflatoxin, as well as the mean aflatoxin content of samples, increased with increasing borer damage.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Ears with less than 2% damage averaged 11.7 ppb aflatoxin in 1994.
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Ears with <2% insect damage had an average of 11.7 and 43.6 ppb of aflatoxin in 1994 and 1995, respectively.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Ears with less than 2% damage averaged 43.6 ppb aflatoxin in 1995.
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Ears with <2% insect damage had an average of 11.7 and 43.6 ppb of aflatoxin in 1994 and 1995, respectively.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Ears with greater than 10% damage averaged 514.6 ppb aflatoxin in 1994.
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Ears in the highest damage class (i.e., > 10%damage) had an average aflatoxin of 514.6 and 388.2 ppb in 1994 and 1995, respectively.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Ears with greater than 10% damage averaged 388.2 ppb aflatoxin in 1995.
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Ears in the highest damage class (i.e., > 10%damage) had an average aflatoxin of 514.6 and 388.2 ppb in 1994 and 1995, respectively.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Sitophilus zeamais was associated with significantly increased aflatoxin in 1994 only.
- Interactor
- Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky
Sitophilus zeamaise0pest - Outcome
- levels of aflatoxin in grain samplese0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- In 1994 onlye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“In 1994 only, coleopteran species such as Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky and Carpophilus sp. significantly increased levels of aflatoxin in grain samples.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Carpophilus was associated with significantly increased aflatoxin in 1994 only.
- Interactor
- Carpophilus sp.
Carpophiluse0pest - Outcome
- levels of aflatoxin in grain samplese0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- In 1994 onlye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

_(9720396701).png?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“In 1994 only, coleopteran species such as Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky and Carpophilus sp. significantly increased levels of aflatoxin in grain samples.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Insect feeding increased kernel infection and aflatoxin contamination in the field trial.
- Treatment
- insect feedinge0
- Interactor
- A. flavus
Aspergillus flavuse0pathogen - Second interactor
- M. nigrivenellaMussidia nigrivenellae0pest
- Outcome
- kernel infection and aflatoxin contaminatione0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Setting
- field triale0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“In a field trial using M. nigrivenella infestation and A. flavus inoculation treatments, the presence of the insect feeding resulted in increased kernel infection and aflatoxin contamination.”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
Artificial larval infestation increased maize aflatoxin by 45 ppb on average.
- Treatment
- Artificial infestation with M. nigrivenella larvaee0
- Interactor
- M. nigrivenellaMussidia nigrivenellae0pest
- Outcome
- aflatoxin content of maizee0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 45 ppbe0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim
e0“Artificial infestation with M. nigrivenella larvae increased aflatoxin content of maize by an average of 45 ppb”
Claim · model-written summary
Fungal spore inoculation increased toxin level by 517 ppb.
- Treatment
- inoculation with A. flavus sporese0
- Interactor
- A. flavus
Aspergillus flavuse0pathogen - Outcome
- toxin levele0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 517 ppbe0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“inoculation with A. flavus spores increased the toxin level by 517 ppb”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
The significant infestation-by-inoculation interaction showed higher aflatoxin BI with fungus and borers than fungus alone.
- Treatment
- infestation and inoculatione0
- Interactor
- A. flavus
Aspergillus flavuse1pathogen - Second interactor
- M. nigrivenellaMussidia nigrivenellae1pest
- Outcome
- levels of aflatoxin BIe0
- Direction
- highere0
- Comparator
- fungus alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“The significant interaction between infestation and inoculation indicated that higher levels of aflatoxin BI were found when the fungus was associated with borers than with the fungus alone.”
e1“In a field trial using M. nigrivenella infestation and A. flavus inoculation treatments”
t0“Maize Ears”
Claim · model-written summary
M. nigrivenlla was the major field pest connected to preharvest fungal infection and aflatoxin production.
- Interactor
- A. flavus
Aspergillus flavuse0pathogen - Second interactor
- M. nigrivenllae0pest
- Outcome
- A. flavus infection and subsequent aflatoxin productione0
- Setting
- Benine0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.


Verbatim
e0“M. nigrivenlla was the major field pest connected with A. flavus infection and subsequent aflatoxin production in preharvest maize in Benin.”
The same questions in other papers
inoculation · Aspergillus flavus · Zea mays (maize)Positive and negative results
5 papers in the same direction as this paper · 7 in the opposite direction
- negative
- positive
- positive
9 papers more in this group
See all 13 papers →infection · disease · Zea mays (maize)Positive and negative results
22 papers in the same direction as this paper · 11 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- positive
30 papers more in this group
See all 34 papers →infection · Aspergillus flavus · Zea mays (maize)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- negative
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.