Fusarium graminearum genomics and beyond

Abstract

The filamentous ascomycete Fusarium graminearum has been studied intensively over decades. The fungus causes disease and produces mycotoxins on cereal crops, such as wheat, barley, and maize, threatening global food safety and human health. There is no effective approach to manage the disease or control mycotoxin production due to our limited understanding of underlying gene mechanisms and the lack of resistant cultivars. As great credit to the genome sequencing and analysis of F. graminearum, significant progress has been achieved in the past decade, covering multiple aspects including secondary metabolism, sexual and asexual development, and virulence. Together with advances in systematics, molecular diagnostics, molecular genetics and pathogenomics, F. graminearum is emerging as a model species to study fungal-plant interactions and filamentous fungal biology. In this chapter, we review current F. graminearum research in the postgenome era, focusing on the impact of genome sequencing, functional genomics, and technology applications. We also present our view on current challenges and future perspectives.