INCREASING GLOBAL POPULATIONS AND CHANGING CLIMATES MAKE BOLSTERING FOOD PRODUCTION USING INNOVATIVE METHODS EVER MORE IMPORTANT. HOWEVER, CHANGING CLIMATES AND RAPIDLY EVOLVING PLANT PESTS AND DISEASE-CAUSING PATHOGENS CAN OFTEN MAKE THIS DIFFICULT, EVEN WITH SIGNIFICANT MANUAL AND CHEMICAL INTERVENTION. RUST FUNGI ARE SOME OF THE MOST SEVERE PLANT PATHOGENS, CAUSING SIGNIFICANT YIELD LOSSES TO AGRICULTURAL CROPS WORLDWIDE. TRADITIONALLY, THESE PATHOGENS HAVE BEEN DIFFICULT TO STUDY DUE TO THEIR DIFFICULT-TO-DECIPHER GENOMES. THIS MAKES IT HARDER TO UNDERSTAND THE COMPLETE PICTURE OF HOW RUST FUNGI CAUSE YIELD-DIMINISHING DISEASE IN THEIR PLANT HOSTS. INFORMATION ABOUT THIS PROCESS IS NEEDED TO DEVELOP RESISTANT CROP LINES AND EFFECTIVE PRACTICES AND TREATMENTS TO REDUCE THE OCCURRENCE OF RUST PATHOGENS.BY FOCUSING ON THE RUST FUNGUS PUCCINIA SORGHI, WHICH CAUSES COMMON RUST ON CORN, WE CAN UNCOVER PATHOGEN PRODUCTS THAT ARE INTEGRAL TO CAUSING DISEASE. HAVING A FULL VIEW OF THE FACTORS INVOLVED IN DISEASE DEVELOPMENT IS IMPERATIVE, SO A FULL GENOME ASSEMBLY WILL BE CREATED. THE RUST FACTORS DISCOVERED FROM THIS GENOME ASSEMBLY WILL BE TESTED FOR FUNCTIONS IN DISEASE DEVELOPMENT ALLOWING US TO IDENTIFY THOSE FACTORS MOST INVOLVED. RUST FUNGI INTERACT CLOSELY WITH HOST CELLS, AND THERE ARE MANY HOST FACTORS THAT ARE INVOLVED IN PROLIFERATION OF THE PATHOGENS. AS SUCH, WE WILL ALSO IDENTIFY THE BIGGEST PLAYERS ON THE HOST SIDE THAT ENABLE THE RUST TO TAKE HOLD IN THE PLANT. THIS KNOWLEDGE CAN ULTIMATELY BE USED TO DEVELOP TOOLS TO COMBAT BOTH COMMON RUST AND CAN BE APPLIED TO OTHER DEVASTATING RUST SPECIES.