Purification of corynetoxins from galls of annual ryegrass infected with Corynebacterium rathayi

Abstract

An improved, rapid and efficient purification procedure of corynetoxins, the causal agents of annual ryegrass toxicity, is described. The method relies upon bacterial gall concentration from crude seedhead material and the use of Sep Pak 'Florisil' cartridges and 'short column' chromatography to purify corynetoxinsfrom crude extracts. Extracts were monitored for toxicity using a recently developed bacterial inhibition assay.