Distribution of the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii is not a major determinant of the distribution of fungal alkaloids in Lolium perenne plants

Levels and distribution of the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii in perennial ryegrass ( Lolium perenne) had only small effects on the distributions of three fungal-produced bioactive alkaloids, indicating regulation of alkaloid accumulation in grass tissues inhabited by the endophyte. The relationships of the distributions of the insect and mammalian mycotoxins, lolitrem B and ergovaline, and the insect-feeding deterrent, peramine, with the distribution of fungal mycelium were investigated in three genotypes of perennial ryegrass ( Lolium perenne L.) infected with the endophyte Neotyphodium lolii. In planta levels and distribution of the endophyte and of the three alkaloids were assessed in parallel, and different spatial or temporal concentration gradients were observed for each. Variation in the tissue distribution of the endophyte accounted only for 20%, 6%, and 31% of the variation in ergovaline, lolitrem B, and peramine, respectively. Alkaloid–endophyte ratios, determined in individual grass tissues, showed distinct in planta distribution patterns for each alkaloid and differed in magnitude among genotypes. The ergovaline–endophyte ratio was higher in the very basal plant tissues than in the apical tissues, while the lolitrem B and peramine ratios tended to be higher in apical tissues. The lolitrem B–endophyte ratio increased with leaf age, while no consistent temporal trends were detected for the other alkaloids. The results indicate that endophyte colonisation is a minor determinant of alkaloid levels, and that accumulation of the alkaloids relative to the endophyte mycelium is affected by plant genotype and tissue in a manner specific to each alkaloid. Possible factors in the regulation of alkaloid levels in the grass plant are discussed.