1University College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan
2Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, UVAS, Lahore, Pakistan
3Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Biosciences, UVAS, Lahore, Pakistan
4Department of Wildlife and Ecology, Faculty of Fisheries and Wildlife, UVAS, Lahore, Pakistan
5Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, BZU, Multan, Pakistan
6Department of Animal Nutrion, Faculty of Animal Production and Technology, UVAS, Lahore, Pakistan
7Department of small animal and surgery, Free University of Berlin, Germany
*Corresponding Author: Omer Naseer, University College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan, Email: dromersheikh@gmail.com
Online published on 16 September, 2020.
Aflatoxins are the most deleterious fungal metabolites in humans, animals and plants. Recently, more attention has been paid to the occurrence and growth of Aspergillus spp. In this study, the effects of pH, light, relative humidity (RH) and temperature on the growth of Aspergillus spp. were investigated using broth medium. Results revealed highest mean of dried mycelial weight (365.67mg) at pH 4.0. The highest spores per ml (8.243 × 107) at pH 5.0. Similarly, growth during darkness was higher on first day of incubation in A. candidus and A. niger, while A. flavus and A. fumigatus showed the highest growth under continuous light. Lower RH% (32.5%) favored only the growth of A. niger. However, the growth in other Aspergillus species was significantly increased by RH% (50.5%, 85.0% and 100%). At 40°C, only A. fumigatus and A. flavus showed significant (P<0.05) growth. There were significant differences in all the treatments (P<0.05). This proposes that these interacting environmental conditions impact significant effect on Aspergillus growth.
Aflatoxin, Aspergillus, Light, Ph, Relative humidity, Temperature
