Contaminantes fúngicos associados às frutas nativas e exóticas comercializadas em São Luís - MA

Abstract

The nativeandexoticfruits are consumed as a sourceofcarbohydrates, minerals, vitaminsandwater. However, thesefruitsmaybebeinginfestedbyfungi, becomingindirectlythevehiclesofdisseminationofdiseasesbythesemicroorganismstotheirconsu mers.In this sense, the objective of this research was to verify the incidence and percentage of

the main fungal agents associated with native and exotic fruits commercialized in São Luís- MA. The fruits used in the research were collected at fairs, markets and at CEASA. We

worked with three native and exotic species collected at six different sites. After the collection, the samples were taken to the Phytopathology Laboratory of the State University of Maranhão. The fruits were then incubated in the humid chamber for a period of seven days. Soon after, the fungal growth of the fruits surface was transferred to Petri dishes with BDA (Potato-Dextrose-Àgar) culture medium.Identification of the fungi was performed by preparing blades visualized under an optical microscope. In the native fruits evaluated, the presence of twelve fungus genera in fruits of bacuri and nine genera of these microorganisms in fruits of pequi and pitomba were verified. For exotic fruits, we observed the incidence of six fungal genera in acerola, eight in ata fruits and seven in sapoti samples collected in the São Luís trade.Considering the results, all the native and exotic fruits obtained in the São Luís trade showed fungal contamination. The presence of these micro-organisms in these fruits is of concern, as these agents may represent a danger to the health of consumers