ASST_NON_20256701244776_012|

DISEASES LIKE FUSARIUM HEAD BLIGHT (FHB) CAUSE MAJOR CROP LOSSES IN CEREAL CROPS LIKE WHEAT AND BARLEY, IMPACTING FARMERS AND FOOD PRODUCTION. SEVERAL SPECIES OF FUNGI WITHIN THE GENUS FUSARIUM CAN CAUSE FHB, AND WE DO NOT YET KNOW WHETHER FUNGI INFECTING WILD GRASSES SERVE AS A SOURCE OF NEW GENETIC MATERIAL FOR FUNGI INFECTING CROPS OR WHETHER DIFFERENT FUSARIUM SPECIES INFECT PLANTS DIFFERENTLY.RECENTLY, RESEARCHERS HAVE IDENTIFIED A NEW MECHANISM TO TRANSFER GENES (DNA) BETWEEN GROUPS OF FUNGI, CALLED STARSHIP TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENTS. STARSHIPS CAN CARRY GENES THAT ALLOW THE FUNGUS TO BETTER INFECT PLANTS. THIS PROJECT WILL ALLOW US TO EXAMINE THE DISTRIBUTION AND PREVALENCE OF THESE TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENTS WITHIN FUSARIUM FUNGI CAUSING FHB AND INFECTING WHEAT AND BARLEY. USING WHOLE-GENOME SEQUENCING OF ALL THE DNA IN THE FUNGUS, COMBINED WITH DATA ANALYSIS AND STATISTICAL METHODS, I WILL DETERMINE WHICH FUSARIUM SPECIES ARE MOST CLOSELY RELATED AND IF SPECIES CAUSING FHB CONTAIN MORE STARSHIP TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENTS THAN NON-PATHOGENIC SPECIES. I WILL ALSO EXAMINE WHETHER FUNGI FROM WILD GRASSES AND FUNGI FROM CROPS ARE GENETICALLY DIFFERENT AND WHETHER THEIR STARSHIPS CARRY DIFFERENT GENES RELATED TO DISEASE AND INFECTION. FINALLY, I WILL LOOK AT WHETHER STARSHIPS IMPACT MATING BETWEEN POPULATIONS OF FUSARIUM GRAMINEARUM, WHICH IS THE MOST COMMON SPECIES CAUSING FHB.DUE TO THE IMPORTANCE OF CEREAL CROPS LIKE WHEAT, DISEASES LIKE FHB CAN BE DEVASTATING TO FARMERS, CEREAL PRODUCTION, AND OUR FOOD SUPPLY. THIS PROJECT WILL INFORM DISEASE MANAGEMENT AND PREVENTION STRATEGIES. IN PARTICULAR, THIS PROJECT WILL ADDRESS WHETHER WILD GRASSES SERVE AS ALTERNATIVE HOSTS OF FUNGI INFECTING CROPS, WHETHER DIFFERENT SPECIES OF FUSARIUM CAUSING FHB SHOULD BE MANAGED DIFFERENTLY, AND WHETHER STARSHIP TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENTS HELP FUSARIUM SPECIES INFECT PLANTS.

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