Genome resource announcement: de novo genome assembly and functional annotation for the plant pathogen Fusarium cerealis

Authors: CHIBUOGWU, MAXWELL - Orise Fellow; Panke-Buisse, Kevin; Arther, Christina; McClure, Jennifer

Submitted to: PhytoFrontiers
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/23/2026
Publication Date: 1/28/2026
Citation: Chibuogwu, M., Panke-Buisse, K., Arther, C.M., Mcclure, J.C. 2026. Genome resource announcement: de novo genome assembly and functional annotation for the plant pathogen Fusarium cerealis. PhytoFrontiers. https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-09-25-0103-A.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-09-25-0103-A

Interpretive Summary: The fungal plant pathogen Fusarium cerealis is responsible for diseases of important cereal crops worldwide, including corn, wheat, and oats. The pathogen poses a threat to crop, food animal, and human health due to the toxins it produces during infection of food and feed crops. Genomes of fungal pathogens often reveal multiple genes and gene clusters that are important for toxin production. Identifying these gene clusters can aid in our understanding of the disease, help in development of strategies to mitigate the fungus’s toxic effects, and uncover novel products for use in medicine or agriculture. Here, we present the first high-quality DNA sequence assembly of the Fusarium cerealis genome, a resource that will be helpful to the scientific communities trying to mitigate the effects of this and similar plant pathogens and those interested in discovery of useful natural products.

Technical Abstract: Fusarium cerealis is a toxin-producing plant pathogen that can infect a variety of economically important cereal crops. Corn, wheat, and oats exhibit high susceptibility to the diseases and mycotoxins produced by F. cerealis. Among these mycotoxins is the type B trichothecene known as nivalenol which poses risks to both plant health and food safety. Genomes of plant-pathogenic fungi are replete with an array of virulence genes that encode various specialized metabolites, which play critical roles in the incidence and severity of diseases. This paper presents the first comprehensive high-quality genome assembly of F. cerealis from long-read sequences. The final genome assembly (Flye) comprises 10 contigs, with half of the total assembled genome length contained in contigs that are at least 8.8 megabases (N50 = 8.8 Mb), indicating a substantial degree of continuity and quality. The largest contig reached a length of 11.8 Mb, and the mean genome coverage was 62-fold. AntiSMASH biosynthetic gene cluster analysis identified 47 clusters, indicating rich potential for specialized metabolites useful for novel natural product and drug discovery. This newly generated draft genome represents a vital resource that will facilitate future research endeavors aimed at exploring the genomic characteristics of pathogenic F. cerealis species prevalent in the Midwest, with a focus on identifying novel specialized metabolites that may contribute to their virulence and adaptability in various agricultural environments.