Ergot Alkaloids

The ingestion of sclerotia, or ergots, has been associated with diseases since antiquity. An Assyrian tablet dated to 600 B.C.E., referring to a “noxious pustule in the ear of grain,” is believed to be an early reference to ergot. Human ergotism was common in Europe in the Middle Ages.

Since normal grain cleaning and milling processes remove most of the ergot, ergotism is extremely rare today. The causative agents of ergotism are usually destroyed during baking and cooking.

Fungi that produce them

Produced as a toxic cocktail of alkaloids in the sclerotia of species of Claviceps.

Substrates

Claviceps are common pathogens of various grass species.

Associated diseases

Ergotism: human disease acquired by eating cereals infected with ergot sclerotia, usually in the form of bread made from contaminated flour. Two forms are usually recognized.

Gangrenous: affects the blood supply to the extremities.

Convulsive: affects the central nervous system.

Veterinarian problem: The principal animals at risk are cattle, sheep, pigs, and chickens. Clinical symptoms include gangrene, abortion, convulsions, suppression of lactation, hypersensitivity, and ataxia.

Bennett & Klich, 2003, Breitenbach et al 2002, and Peraica et al, 1999.