In 2008, scientists funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science at the DOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI) mapped the genome of this important organism using the Army reference strain.
According to Eddy Rubin, DOE JGI Director in 2008 interview, “the genome of T. reesei provides us with a roadmap for accelerating research to optimize fungal strains for reducing the current prohibitively high cost of converting lignocellulose [plant biomass] to fermentable sugars [precursor of biofuels].”
More on the T. reesei fungal genome’s significance at the DOE’s Office of Science news site.