Characterisation of resistance in wheat to Fusarium Head Blight complex

Abstract: The plant pathobiome is described as a set of microorganisms that interact with each other and with the plant biotic environment to influence disease progress. Recent studies have led to the realisation that a disease in a plant is not always associated with single organisms rather is a result of complex interactions between various taxa, the host, and the environment. In this study, we investigated the pathobiome composition of diseased wheat kernels as well as the role of host genotype in determining the assembly of the Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) disease complex. For this purpose, we isolated Fusarium spp. from infected wheat spikes and conducted infection assays on wheat to observe the interaction within the FHB complex, as well as the possible role of the plant genotype in disease progression. The outcome suggested that complex interactions occur within the FHB complex, as well as between the complex and the wheat genotype to cause disease. Hence, the plant genotype has a role in how the communities within the pathobiome interact to cause disease.