Authors: Gloria Baker 1, Sunkyu Choi 1, Martin I Chilvers 1, Alyssa Betts 2, Jessica Cooper 2, Rawnaq Chowdhury 3, Briana Whitaker 3, Darcy Telenko 4, Ruth Dill Macky 5, Andrew Friskop 6, Stephen Wegulo 7, Madalyn Shires 8, Nidhi Rawat 9, Maira Duffeck 10, Alyssa Collins 11, Gary Bergstrom 12, Mandy Bish 13, Boyd Padgett 14
1. Michigan State University, Department of Plant and Soil Microbial Sciences, Lansing, MI
2. University of Delaware, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Georgetown, DE
3. USDA-ARS, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research, Peoria, IL
4. Purdue University, Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, West Lafayette, IN
5. University of Minnesota, Department of Plant Pathology, Minneapolis, MN
6. North Dakota State University, Department of Plant Pathology, Fargo, ND
7. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Department of Plant Pathology, Lincoln, NE
8. South Dakota State University, Department of Agronomy, Horticulture & Plant Science, Brookings, SD
9. University of Maryland, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, College Park, MD
10. Oklahoma State University, Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology, Stillwater, OK
11. Pennsylvania State University, SE Agricultural Research & Extension Center, Lancaster, PA
12. Cornell University, School of Integrative Plant Science, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Section, Ithaca, NY
13. University of Missouri, Division of Plant Science and Technology, Columbia, MO
14. Louisiana State University Ag Center, Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology, Baton Rouge, LA
Corresponding Author: Gloria Baker, bakergl1@msu.edu
Presenting Author: Gloria Baker
Abstract
Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) is one of the most economically devastating diseases of wheat globally and caused estimated losses of $171,000,000 in 2024 in the United States. FHB is caused by fungal phytopathogens from the genus Fusarium. While the predominant species in the United States is F. graminearum, several less prevalent species are known to coexist within the same grain tissue. To further complicate the identification of Fusarium species implicated in this disease, the genus Fusarium is comprised of several species complexes which require multilocus genotyping to accurately determine the species identity of isolates. This study assesses the species diversity of Fusarium isolates derived from various cereal grains in the United States Midwest and East Coast. We have successfully obtained 400+ isolates from symptomatic cereal grains from 15 states in the Midwest and East Coast from 2021-2025. In this collection, Fusarium has been isolated from wheat, barley, oats and rye. So far, we have confirmed the species identity of 205 isolates collected from 2021-2024 in the Midwest using the TEF1α and RPB2 loci. To our understanding, we have identified a potential global first report of F. nanum. The isolate came from a two-row barley spike from Minnesota in 2024. Interestingly, it was isolated along with F. graminearum from a single kernel. Kochs postulate must be tested for the F. nanum to confirm its ability to be a causal agent of FHB. The collection of Fusarium isolates will be subjected to fungicide sensitivity testing across various modes of action to assess whether insensitive populations of Fusarium are present in the Midwest or East Coast small grain growing regions. The information obtained from this study will improve our understanding of FHB management in the Midwest and East Coast states.