Alternative approaches to assuring guality and security of buckwheat grain microbiome

Harvested grain is frequently colonized by field fungi, some known as mycotoxin producers, which compromise their use as food and feed. In the case of buckwheat grain, current grain management practices include drying and storage at low humidity conditions to reduce grain spoilage risks. The development of new directions in grain production and post-harvest management will require an in-depth understanding of biological systems and the introduction of innovative state-of-the-art technologies. Grain microbial communities can be tailored to encourage the prevalence of beneficial organisms resulting in improved grain quality. However, factors affecting grain diversity are still not thoroughly understood. Environmental conditions are one of the factors shaping the fungal diversity of harvested grain. We hypothesize that buckwheat biomolecules (phenols, flavonoids) shape fungal diversity and dynamics within the grain microbiome. Therefore, we propose to analyze factors affecting fungal diversity and dynamics (endophyte antagonists, phenolics) using buckwheat grain microbiome as a model system. We expect that improved knowledge on diversity components shaping fungal communities will enable us to optimize grain decontamination protocols using non-thermal plasma technology and reduce risks of grain spoilage.