FABIans gathered on the afternoon of 23 July to celebrate the first peer-reviewed journal publications from the MSc and PhD studies of nine students in the Institute. This tradition celebrates a milestone in every young researcher’s career and is the foundation on which FABI is built, high-quality research and publication output.

Simoné Bornman, Taygen Fuchs, Frances Lane, Phrasia Mapfumo, Bianke Marx, Heike Möller, Preston Shaw, Chanel Thomas and Alida van Dijk were each given a small gift and, along with their supervisor gave a short overview of the paper and the journey to publishing it.

Publications:

Bornman S., D. Read, B.D. Wingfield, P.M. Wilken. 2026. Unveiling the hidden virome of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum: New tools and discoveries in mycovirus detection. Virology 623: 111020. 10.1016/j.virol.2026.111020.

Fuchs T., C.M. Visagie, B.D. Wingfield, M.J. Wingfield. 2026. Sporothrix and Sporotrichosis; A South African perspective on a growing global health threat. Mycoses 67(10): e13806. 10.1111/myc.13806.

Lane F.A., B.D. Wingfield, M.J. Wingfield, P.M. Wilken. 2026. Lineage-specific diversity of pheromone response pathway genes is independent of mating strategy in Ceratocystis. BMC Genomics 27: 320. 10.1186/s12864-026-12527-y.

Mapfumo P., S. Buthelezi, E. Archer, D.Z.H. Zwanevelder, P.M. Wilken, N. Creux. 2024. In-field climatic factors driving Sclerotinia head rot progression across different sunflower planting dates. Plant Pathology 73(5): 1112-1126. 10.1111/ppa.13873.

Marx B., A. van Dijk, E.T. Steenkamp, M.J. Wingfield, B.D. Wingfield. 2026. Breaking the mould: Cellulose in the cell walls of the Ophiostomatales. Fungal Biology Reviews 57: 100489. 10.1016/j.fbr.2026.100489.

Möller H., B. Slippers, N. van den Berg. 2025. Branch canker battles: Understanding and managing the Botryosphaeriaceae in avocado. Phytoparasitica 53: 17. 10.1007/s12600-024-01227-6.

Shaw P.L., B. Slippers, B.D. Wingfield, B. Laurent, B. Penaud, M.J. Wingfield, P.W. Crous, W. Bihon, T.A. Duong. 2025. Chromosome-level genome assemblies for the latent pine pathogen, Diplodia sapinea, reveal two accessory chromosomes with distinct genomic features and evolutionary dynamics. Genes|Genomics|Genetics 15(12): jkaf239. 10.1093/g3journal/jkaf239.

Thomas C., P.M. Wilken, M.P.A. Coetzee, C.M. Visagie. 2026. Advancing the taxonomy of Sclerotinia (Helotiales, Sclerotiniaceae): A review and recommendations for an important plant pathogenic fungus. IMA Fungus 17: e175737. 10.3897/imafungus.17.175737.

van Dijk A., A.M. Wilson, B. Marx, B. Hough, B. Swalarsk-Parry, L. de Vos, M.J. Wingfield, B.D. Wingfield, E.T. Steenkamp. 2025. CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing reveals that the Pgs gene of Fusarium circinatum is involved in pathogenicity, growth and sporulation. Fungal Genetic Biology 10.1016/j.fgb.2025.103970.