Seed mycoflora and malting characteristics of some sorghum cultivars

Abstract

The seed mycoflora and malting characteristics of 26 sorghum cultivars were evaluated. The fungi Aspergillus flavus, Curvularia lunata, Cladosporium cladosporioides and Fusarium moniliforme were dominant on the seeds of all the cultivars. The seeds were steeped in excess water for 24 h, and the alpha-amylase of malts was assayed after 3 days of germination. The moisture contents of 24 h steeped grains varied from 32.4 to 43.4 %, and the samples with higher moisture contents on steeping exhibited higher incidences of mould infection during germination. The alpha-amylase activities of malt samples ranged from 88 to 864 maltose units, and the malts of the samples with heavy mould infection during germination exhibited slightly higher amylase activities (r=0.4033).