Hofstad, Anna Nicole2014-09-082014-09-082013-12https://hdl.handle.net/11299/165492University of Minnesota M.S. thesis. December 2013. Major: Applied Plant Sciences. Advisor: Gary J. Muehlbauer. 1 computer file (PDF); vi, 95 pages.Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) is a disease caused by the fungal pathogen <italic>Fusarium graminearum</italic> that can lead to severe yield loss and reduction in grain quality in wheat. Trichothecene mycotoxins, such as deoxynivalenol (DON), accumulate during infection and increase pathogen virulence. The <italic>Fhb1</italic> locus on wheat chromosome 3BS confers type II resistance to FHB and is associated with DON resistance. To gain a better genetic understanding of the functional role of <italic>Fhb1</italic>, a near-isogenic line (NIL) pair carrying the resistant and susceptible alleles for <italic>Fhb1</italic> was examined for gene expression during <italic<F. graminearum</italic> infection and DON treatment. Post-infection DON concentration assays and transcriptomic results show that the rachis is a key location for conferring type II resistance. Additionally, the wheat transcriptome data reveal a set of <italic>Fhb1</italic>-responsive genes. Gene transcriptomic results of the pathogen show that the <italic>F. graminearum</italic> genome responds differently to the level of host resistance.en-USThesis or Dissertation