Intraspecies Interaction of Fusarium graminearum Contributes to Reduced Toxin Production and Virulence

Abstract

Fusarium graminearum is a pathogenic fungus that causes Fusarium head blight in wheat and lowers the yield and quality of grains by contamination with the trichothecene mycotoxin deoxynivalenol. The fungi coexist and interact with several different fusaria as well as other plant pathogenic fungi and bacteria in the field. In Canada, F. graminearum exists as two main trichothecene chemotypes: 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol and 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol. To understand the potential interactions between two isolates of these chemotypes, we conducted coinoculation studies both in culture and in planta. The studies showed that intraspecies interaction reduces trichothecene yield in culture and disease symptoms in wheat. To elucidate the genes involved in the intraspecies interaction, expression profiling was performed on RNA samples isolated from coinoculated cultures, and potential genes were identified by using the genome sequences of the respective isolates.