A functional genomics approach to the identification of genes determining fungal pathogenesis of cereals

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This project aims to characterise and understand the role of genes that condition the pathogenic habit in the economically important cereal fungal pathogen, Mycosphaerella graminicola (anamorph Septoria tritici). This fungus, along with Phaeosphaeria nodorum, is responsible for the Septoria leaf blotch disease of wheat which is estimated to cause annual losses in the UK of c. 330 kt. This is despite the use of fungicides on over 95% of the wheat crops grown in this country. In recent years, M. Graminicola has become the more prevalent of the two pathogens, and its increasing importance is reflected in the emphasis placed on M. Graminicola in this project. In 2002, field isolates resistant to strobilurin fungicides were identified in several EU countries. Our main objectives are to identify pathogenicity genes and key metabolic and biological processes contributing to infection and colonisation of the host through the use of new emerging genomic technologies. By gaining a better knowledge of the mechanisms underlying pathogenicity and virulence we should be better placed to identify key events in the disease cycle of these pathogens that determine their ability to incite disease and cause associated crop losses. These targets could then be exploited in the development and discovery of new, novel and environmentally benign control measures for crop improvement to reduce disease incidence.

The work involves:
1) bioinformatic analysis of DNA sequence data from cDNA libraries through expressed sequence tags (ESTs) to identify gene function
2) transcription profiling analysis of various biological scenario's using an EST fabricated array containing 2,563 distinct unigenes to study overall gene expression during infection and colonisation of the host,
3) targeted gene knock-out experiments to ascribe gene function.
4) bioinformatic analysis of the fully sequenced M. Graminicola genome
5) investigating the mechanisms of wheat leaf susceptibility and resistance

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