Botrytis spp.: A Contemporary Perspective and Synthesis of Recent Scientific Developments of a Widespread Genus that Threatens Global Food Security

Abstract

This perspective presents a synopsis of the topics contained in the Phytopathology Pathogen Spotlight on Botrytis spp. causing gray mold, including pathogen biology and systematics, genomic characterization of new species, perspectives on genome editing, and fungicide resistance. A timely breakthrough to engineer host plant resistance against the gray mold fungus has been demonstrated in planta and may augment chemical controls in the near future. While B. cinerea has garnered much of the research attention, other economically important Botrytis spp. have been identified and characterized via morphological and genome-based approaches. Gray mold control is achieved primarily through fungicide applications but resistance to various chemical classes is a major concern that threatens global plant health and food security. In this issue, new information on molecular mechanism(s) of fungicide resistance and ways to manage control failures are presented. Finally, a significant leap in fundamental pathogen biology has been achieved via development of CRISPR/Cas9 to assess gene function in the fungus which likely will spawn new control mechanisms and facilitate gene discovery studies.