Grainswest - Spring 2024

Spring 2024 Grains West 24 Research by Gabriel Ribeiro at the University of Saskatchewan determined livestock experience heat stress at 20 C and beyond when they consume more than three parts per million ergot alkaloids. “Twenty is not super-hot,” said Stanford. “As temperatures keep getting warmer, if ergot is making animals like cattle less able to thermoregulate, it’s another little problem.” Thankfully, there is a remedy. “The solution is just to blend it out so that you have much less concentration,” she said. “If you’ve got it less than one part per million in feedlot cattle, there might be a little bit of reduced intake, but mostly you are not going to run into problems.” Such additional problems could include vaso-constriction of blood vessels due to high alkaloid presence. This will cause tissues to die, which can result in tails and ear tips falling off. It may also get into a cow’s hooves, which can cause the entire hoof to slough off, or the animal may appear lame. TEST FOR IT To confirm its presence and determine the concentration of ergot in grain, have it tested. In Western Canada, Prairie Diagnostic Services is available for farmers, said Stanford. A non-profit co-created by the Saskatchewan government and USask, it operates at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine on the university’s campus. While some smaller outfits may perform a general test, PDS targets all six primary ergot alkaloids that negatively affect cattle. Because each alkaloid comes in two forms, R and S isomers, testing for both is critical. “It’s important to get R and S analysis,” said Stanford. “The problem is we’re working with very, very small concentrations of these alkaloids. Some of the research ERGOT RESISTANT DURUM AWORK IN PROGRESS Canadian durum is of huge value to the export market. A recent Cereals Canada study determined durum wheat is responsible for the creation of 5,000 jobs and $1.1 billion in annual revenues. Its one glaring weakness looms over this strong market position. Not a single durum cultivar is resistant to ergot. The country’s top variety, Transcend, for instance, is susceptible. Much of Canada’s durum is exported, including to Italy, where it is used in pasta products. The dark colour caused by the ergot sclerotia is a problem for food processors and manufacturers. Customers want a bright, uniform yellow on store shelves. Research is underway to create truly resistant cultivars and make them commercially available to Canadian farmers. Yuefeng Ruan is Canada’s public durum breeder, and Samia Berraies, is a cereal pathologist hard at work to make this a reality. The two are in the midst of a four-year Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada project to develop one or more resistant cultivars. Their project began in April 2021 and will conclude by Aug. 15, 2025. Intensely aware of the necessity to produce high-quality cultivars, Alberta Grains contributed $60,000 of the project’s total $315,000 cost. The project began on an optimistic note. Results from previous work on ergot resistance conducted at Swift Current provided a solid base to explore genetic factors that confer resistance. “The objective of evaluating durum genetic populations is to identify the regions in the genome that are associated with ergot resistance,” said Berraies. Two durum wheat genetic populations were used for the study. Plants were challenged with ergot inoculum at the flowering stage. The reactions of the lines to infection was recorded. “The lines carrying the desirable genetic regions for ergot resistance were selected and used as parental lines and crossed with other durum-adapted materials in order to transfer those resistance genes in durum germplasm,” said Ruan. The researchers appear to have identified multiple winning genes, which will be bred into future crosses. Ruan is hopeful the project will deliver new genetics to western Canadian farmers soon. “If we get more genes in one plant, then even in a really bad year, the plant will show much better resistance compared to the plant having less genes,” he explained. “For resistance, this is a complex trait, it’s not just one gene, it’s multiple genes.” They are working to identify as many genes as possible, a number they have yet to determine. Like any disease, ergot pathogens evolve and mutate, so variety development will be ongoing. It is well worth the fight, given the protection it could provide Prairie farmers. Berraies points out ergot tolerance regulations are increasingly strict around the world. This is a signal Canadian breeders must work hard to provide cultivar options for farmers so they can supply the international market. “Those tighter restrictions can affect the trade market and the capability to export our wheat,” she said. “The need to develop truly resistant varieties for ergot in our breeding program is of paramount importance.” we’ve done lately shows that the analysis of the feed can vary up to one part per million just based on if you’re looking at a complete diet that would have silage in it versus just the grain. So, differences in pH are going to affect the analysis of these alkaloids. They’re very difficult to analyze.” Results are generally received within seven to 10 days. Farmers can also feed alkaloid binders to livestock. These are typically clay- based. Stanford said it’s up to individual judgement whether the cost of such binders outweighs the risk to animal health. “The performance would have to be really a lot better to pay for the binder,” she said. She reminds cattle farmers to trust their gut. If they see signs of ergot contamination, such as cattle being suddenly less interested in their feed, to deal with it immediately before it gets out of hand. FEATURE