Fungi represent a major challenge in agro-food systems, as they can cause diseases in plants and food spoilage that can affect the quality of the final product. Some fungi also produce mycotoxins, which cause diseases in people and livestock. Recently, the use of cold plasma technology has also been focused on the area of decontamination of microorganisms from seeds and other food material. Plasma treatment is a more environmentally friendly alternative to chemical food processing. In this research, the effectiveness of the decontamination of the fungi Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Epicoccum nigrum, Fusarium graminearum, Fusarium fujikuroi, Fusarium oxysporum and Fusarium proliferatum from the surface of artificially infected buckwheat seeds with low-pressure cold gas plasma (LPCP) was examined. With increasing exposure to LPCP the infection rate of seeds was successfully reduced. After more prolonged exposure of seeds to LPCP (120 s and more), complete decontamination was attained for the fungi Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium cladosporioides and Fusarium graminearum. Other selected fungi from Fusarium genus were generally less susceptible to LPCP treatment, which could be related to the structure of their spores. After prolonged exposure of seeds to LPCP the germination was almost ceased. Thus, longer exposure to LPCP is suitable for seeds intended for storage and food use, but not for further sowing.
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