The Endoplasmic Reticulum Cargo Receptor FgErv14 Regulates DON Production, Growth and Virulence in .

is a plant filamentous pathogenic fungi and the predominant causal agent of head blight (FHB) in cereals worldwide. The regulators of the secretory pathway contribute significantly to fungal mycotoxin synthesis, development, and virulence. However, their roles in these processes in remain poorly understood. Here, we identified and functionally characterized the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) cargo receptor FgErv14 in . Firstly, it was observed that FgErv14 is mainly localized in the ER. Then, we constructed the FgErv14 deletion mutant (Δ) and found that the absence of the FgErv14 caused a serious reduction in vegetative growth, significant defects in asexual and sexual reproduction, and severely impaired virulence. Furthermore, we found that the Δ mutant exhibited a reduced expression of genes and defective toxisome generation, both of which are critical for deoxynivalenol (DON) biosynthesis. Importantly, we found the green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged FgRud3 was dispersed in the cytoplasm, whereas GFP-FgSnc1-PEM was partially trapped in the late Golgi in Δ mutant. These results demonstrate that FgErv14 mediates anterograde ER-to-Golgi transport as well as late secretory Golgi-to-Plasma membrane transport and is necessary for DON biosynthesis, asexual and sexual reproduction, vegetative growth, and pathogenicity in .