Lifestyle transitions in plant pathogenic Colletotrichum fungi deciphered by genome and transcriptome analyses.

Colletotrichum species are fungal pathogens that devastate crop plants worldwide. Host infection involves the differentiation of specialized cell types that are associated with penetration, growth inside living host cells (biotrophy) and tissue destruction (necrotrophy). We report here genome and transcriptome analyses of Colletotrichum higginsianum infecting Arabidopsis thaliana and Colletotrichum graminicola infecting maize.

Transcriptome analyses during fruiting body formation in Fusarium graminearum and Fusarium verticillioides reflect species life history and ecology.

Fusarium graminearum and F. verticillioides are devastating cereal pathogens with very different life history and ecological characteristics. F.

Sexual development and ascospore discharge in Fusarium graminearum.

Fusarium graminearum has become a model system for studies in development and pathogenicity of filamentous fungi. F. graminearum most easily produces fruiting bodies, called perithecia, on carrot agar.