The majority of this project was accomplished by analyses at transcriptional level. To confirm the roles different QS related regulators play in the entire regulatory network of B. glumae, protein level studies need to be designed. The interaction between TofM and TofR can be characterized by protein affinity analysis. The functions of luxIR intergenic genes are not understood very well for most phytopathogenic bacteria, so the future studies of TofM will provide useful reference information.