ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview about the rodents and mammalian cell lines that were most recently used as laboratory models to study Fusarium mycotoxicoses. The major Fusarium mycotoxins frequently occurring in cereal grains and animal feeds are fumonisins, trichothecenes, and zearalenone (ZEA). The members of the genus Fusarium are hyaline filamentous fungi and are found largely as saprophytic organisms in soil. Fusarium is also one of the major fungal genera associated with maize and other cereals throughout the world. Certain Fusarium species are able to produce mycotoxins, which may contribute to plant and human pathogenesis. Fusarium species are probably the most cited and among the most prolific trichothecene-producing fungi. Rodents are the most popular laboratory animal models for the examination of Fusarium mycotoxins; therefore, a broad search strategy was applied to retrieve full-text papers and—in cases when full-text access was not available—abstracts from the PubMed database.
