Partial Purification of Toxin from Curvularia lunata (Wakker) Boedijn

The fungus isolated from diseased tissues of pearl millet leaves was identified as Curvularia lunata. A toxin, isolated from 14 day old culture filtrate of C. lunata, was partially purified by ammonium sulfate fractionation followed by gel filtration through Sephadex G-100. The toxin was heat stable and soluble in water and acetate buffer at pH 5.5 to 6.0. Toxin was found to be most active at pH 5.5. The partially purified toxin showed some degree of host specificity. Different host varieties were screened for disease resistance. Toxin also affected cell permeability of susceptible host tissues.