oa Aspergillus Salwaensis, A Novel Ochratoxin Producing Species From Qatar

Aspergillus species belonging to the section Circumdati are important as they can produce several mycotoxins, including ochratoxin A (OTA). OTA in foodstuffs is undesirable and several studies have shown that this compound has teratogenic, neurotoxic, genotoxic, immunotoxic, and nephrotoxic properties. We isolated a novel ochratoxin A producing Aspergillus species from sand samples collected from Salwa beach in Qatar. This species was characterized using a polyphasic approach including morphological characters, extrolite data and partial calmodulin, B-tubulin and ITS sequences. The name Aspergillus salwaense has been proposed for this unique fungus as it was isolated from Salwa beach. The ecology and the significance of this species in food commodities is unknown and needs further study.