milRNAome of Fusarium virguliforme colonization of soybean roots

Modulation of fungal pathogenesis has recently expanded to include micro-like RNAs (milRNAs). These small regulatory RNA modules of 18-22 nt in length were first observed in Neurospora crassa. Since initial discovery, milRNA have been observed to be involved in processes related to fungal development, including in S. sclerotiorum and F. oxysporum. To build upon the demonstrated roles for milRNAs in fungi, we next asked if plant pathogenic fungal milRNAs regulate the expression of host targets, as previously observed with small RNAs. To test this, we conducted a comprehensive microRNA sequencing analysis of our time-course of infection to 1) inventory the suite of F. virguliforme-derived milRNAS, and 2) determine with these molecules affect the expression of host target transcripts.