| Summary: | <i>Fusarium kuroshium</i> is the fungal symbiont associated with the ambrosia beetle <i>Euwallacea kuroshio</i>, a plague complex that attacks avocado, among other hosts, causing a disease named <i>Fusarium</i> dieback (FD). However, the contribution of <i>F. kuroshium</i> to the establishment of this disease remains unknown. To advance the understanding of <i>F. kuroshium</i> pathogenicity, we profiled its exo-metabolome through metabolomics tools based on accurate mass spectrometry. We found that <i>F. kuroshium</i> can produce several key metabolites with phytotoxicity properties and other compounds with unknown functions. Among the metabolites identified in the fungal exo-metabolome, fusaric acid (FA) was further studied due to its phytotoxicity and relevance as a virulence factor. We tested both FA and organic extracts from <i>F. kuroshium</i> at various dilutions in avocado foliar tissue and found that they caused necrosis and chlorosis, resembling symptoms similar to those observed in FD. This study reports for first-time insights regarding <i>F. kuroshium</i> associated with its virulence, which could lead to the potential development of diagnostic and management tools of FD disease and provides a basis for understanding the interaction of <i>F. kuroshium</i> with its host plants.
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