Author(s)

Amidou S. Ouili^1*, Ynoussa Maiga¹, Mahamadi Nikiema², Souleymane Bissiri¹, Yérobessor Dabiré³, Illiassou Mogmenga⁴, Cheik Omar Tidiane Compaore¹, Aboubakar Sidiki Ouattara¹

¹Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Biotechnologies Microbiennes, Université Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
²Institut Supérieur de Développement Durable (ISDD), Université de Fada N’Gourma, Fada N’Gourma, Burkina Faso.
³Laboratoire de Biochimie, Biotechnologie, Technologie Alimentaire et Nutrition, Université Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
⁴Centre Universitaire de Banfora, Université NAZI BONI, Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso.

Cowpea is a very popular foodstuff among people in sub-Saharan Africa. In Burkina Faso, it is the main food legume, especially in rural areas. Its production is facing difficulties including post-harvest losses caused by fungi. Therefore, the objective of this study was to isolate and identify fungal strains associated with cowpea seeds produced in Burkina Faso. Thus, a total of 108 seed samples were collected in the three agro-ecological zones of Burkina Faso. The sanitary analysis of the seeds was carried out using the direct contact method. The isolation and purification of the isolates were performed on Potato Dextrose Agar medium while their identification was done through macroscopic and microscopic phenotypical characterization using different culture media (Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA), Malt Extract Agar (MEA) and Czapeck Dox Agar (CZA)) and different identification keys. A total of 10 fungal species were isolated, with predominance of Aspergillus flavus, Aspegillus niger, Macrophomina phaseolina, Fusarium oxysporium and Rhizopus sp. whose infection rates were 70.8% to 100% of seed samples. In addition to being present in all three zones, the infection rates of Aspergillus flavus (56.55%), Aspergillus niger (20.35%) and Rhizopus (32.80%) were higher in the Sahelian zone. In the Sudano-Sahelian zone, Macrophomina (50.66%) and Fusarium (18.88%) presented the highest infection rates, while Penicillium sp. showed the highest infection rate (2.84%) in the Sudanian zone. This finding demonstrated the necessity to improve post-harvest and conservation techniques of cowpea to limit crop losses and preserve the sanitary quality of this important foodstuff.

Cowpea, Seed-Borne Fungi, Agro-Ecological Zones, Burkina Faso

Ouili, A. , Maiga, Y. , Nikiema, M. , Bissiri, S. , Dabiré, Y. , Mogmenga, I. , Compaore, C. and Ouattara, A. (2023) Post-Harvest Fungi Associated with Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) Seeds Produced in Burkina Faso. Advances in Microbiology, 13, 148-163. doi: 10.4236/aim.2023.133009.