Host specialization by pathogens requires a repertoire of virulence factors as well as fine-tuned regulation of gene expression. The fungal wheat pathogen Zymoseptoria tritici (synonym Mycosphaerella graminicola) is a powerful model system for the discovery of genetic elements that underlie virulence and host specialization. We transcriptionally profiled the early stages of Z. tritici infection...

The role of extracellular fl-1,3-glucanases and chitinases was investigated in oat leaves after infection with different rust fungi . The oat leaves (Avena sativa L .) were inoculated with the compatible rust Puccinia coronata f. sp . avenae and the two nonpathogens Puccinia recondita f. sp . tritici and Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici . No alterations in enzyme activities were found in the co...

The necrotrophic fungal pathogen Pyrenophora tritici-repentis causes tan spot, a major disease of wheat, throughout the world. The proteinaceous effector ToxA is responsible for foliar necrosis on ToxA-sensitive wheat genotypes. The single copy ToxA gene was deleted from a wild-type race 1 P. tritici-repentis isolate via homologous recombination of a knockout construct. Expression of the ToxA t...

The ascomycete Zymoseptoria tritici is the causal agent of Septoria leaf blotch on wheat. Disease control relies mainly on resistant wheat cultivars and on fungicide applications. The fungus displays a high potential to circumvent both methods. Resistance against all unisite fungicides has been observed over decades. A different type of resistance has emerged among wild populations with multidr...

Septoria tritici blotch (STB), caused by the fungus Zymoseptoria tritici, is currently main threat to worldwide wheat production in temperate climates. Understanding genetic mechanisms that underpin Z. tritici–wheat interaction will be crucial for generating new control strategies against STB. Plant hormones are essential regulators of growth and immunity. In particular, jasmonic acid (JA) play...

Septoria tritici blotch is currently the major foliar disease of wheat in most of Europe, North Africa, South America, and several other parts of the world. Until recently, little was known about the genetics of resistance to this disease in comparison to, for example, the better-studied rust diseases and mildew. New sources of resistance and improved knowledge about the genetics of resistance ...

Understanding how habitat heterogeneity may affect the evolution of plant pathogens is essential to effectively predict new epidemiological landscapes and manage genetic diversity under changing global climatic conditions. In this study, we explore the effects of habitat heterogeneity, as determined by variation in host resistance and local temperature, on the evolution of Zymoseptoria tritici ...

Tan spot (TS), caused by the fungus Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Died) Drechs, is an important foliar disease of wheat and has become a threat to world wheat production since the 1970s. In this study a globally diverse pre-1940s collection of 247 wheat genotypes was evaluated against Ptr ToxA, P. tritici-repentis race 1, and stem rust to determine if; (i) acquisition of Ptr ToxA by the P. trit...