Meet Franz Berthiller, an associate professor at the Institute of Bioanalytics and Agro-Metabolomics of the BOKU University Department IFA-Tulln and an honorary professor at the Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland. Berthiller is an expert in liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS). He has received numerous scientific awards and served as the chair of the Austrian Society of Toxicology and is currently serving as the vice-chair. Since 2018 he has been the editor-in-chief of the World Mycotoxin Journal and his research publications include 180 international peer-reviewed publications which have over 10,000 combined citations.

Passion for Chemistry Leads to Career in Mycotoxins

Berthiller was born to farmers in Austria, the eldest of three children. At the elementary and middle school levels, he was already fascinated with natural sciences and science fiction. He selected to attend a chemistry high school and naturally transitioned into studying chemistry at the university level. His parents supported this dream and Berthiller attended the University of Vienna where he was most interested in the areas of biochemistry, analytical chemistry, and food chemistry. He then went on to attend IFA-Tulln, now a department of BOKU University, and completed his doctorate degree. By chance, his research project happened to focus on Fusarium mycotoxins and their determination with liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. He credits his supervisors, who not only supported him while he obtained his degree but also later on, for inspiring him to continue working on mycotoxins and LC-MS.

Mycotoxin Metabolism Project Clarifies Significant of D3G

One of his most impactful scab related projects was leading a 7-year project on mycotoxin metabolism by plants, microbes, and animals. This allowed him and his colleagues to clarify the significance of the formation of deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside (D3G) for plants and plant breeding, but also determine the toxicological effects on animals. The results of this work enabled the European Food Safety Authority to revise the tolerable daily intake of deoxynivalenol and take into account D3G and acetylated forms.

Following Your Interests Opens Opportunities

Berthiller has always done the things that most interest him. “Always follow your heart,” he says. If you follow those things that bring you joy, all the other things will naturally follow. This is true for his story. He has been at BOKU for nearly 22 years and an associate professor for the past nine. He appreciates how his position provides a tremendous amount of flexibility with many opportunities to pursue novel and intriguing research questions but also to teach the next generation.

Insights on European Views of Trichothecenes

Attendees of the 2024 National Fusarium Head Blight Forum in Austin, Texas, will have the chance to learn more about Berthiller’s research on Monday, December 9. During his presentation, he will talk about the European view on trichothecenes and provide occurrence data. He will also present some recent research on the toxicity of some trichothecenes and potential changes to the current legislation.

For more information about Dr. Franz Berthiller's research, visit his faculty profile.

To learn more about others in the FHB community, check out all the previous USWBSI Featured Researchers/Advocates.