Fusarium graminearum is a major fungal pathogen of cereals worldwide, causing 
seedling, stem base and floral diseases, including Fusarium head blight (FHB). 
In addition to yield and quality losses, FHB contaminates cereal grain with 
mycotoxins, including deoxynivalenol, which are harmful to human, animal and 
ecosystem health. Currently, FHB control is only partially effective due to 
several intractable problems. RNA interference (RNAi) is a natural mechanism 
that regulates gene expression. RNAi has been exploited in the development of 
new genomic tools that allow the targeted silencing of genes of interest in many 
eukaryotes. Host-induced gene silencing (HIGS) is a transgenic technology used 
to silence fungal genes in planta during attempted infection and thereby reduces 
disease levels. HIGS relies on the host plant's ability to produce mobile small 
interfering RNA molecules, generated from long double-stranded RNA, which are 
complementary to targeted fungal genes. These molecules are transferred from the 
plant to invading fungi via an uncharacterised mechanism, to cause gene 
silencing. Here, we describe recent advances in RNAi-mediated control of plant 
pathogenic fungi, highlighting the key advantages and disadvantages. We then 
discuss the developments and implications of combining HIGS with other methods 
of disease control. © 2017 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by 
John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.