Ustilago

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Ustilago

Ustilago maydis (Corn smut)

Kingdom:	Fungi
Phylum:	Basidiomycota
Class:	Ustilaginomycetes
Order:	Ustilaginales
Genus:	Ustilago (Pers.) Roussel 1806

Species

U. avenae (Pers.) Rostr. -- loose smut of oats
U. esculenta P. Henn. -- zizania smut
U. maydis (DC.) Corda -- corn smut
U. nuda (C.N. Jensen) Kellerm. & Swingle -- loose smut of barley
U. tritici C. Bauhin -- loose smut of wheat

Ustilago is a genus of smut fungi parasitic on grasses. There is a large research community that works on Ustilago maydis including researchers at the University of Georgia, Philipps-Universität Marburg, University of British Columbia and others.

Research with this organism has led to better understanding of the genetics underlying self-non-self recognition through elucidation of the mating type system as well as fundamental aspects of signal transduction and cell-cycle regulation.

U. maydis is also eaten as a traditional Mexican food known as huitlacoche corn smut

The genome of U. maydis has been sequenced [1]