scholarly journals A Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Gene (MGV1) in Fusarium graminearum Is Required for Female Fertility, Heterokaryon Formation, and Plant Infection

2002 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 1119-1127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhanming Hou ◽  
Chaoyang Xue ◽  
Youliang Peng ◽  
Talma Katan ◽  
H. Corby Kistler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Fusarium Graminearum ◽  
Magnaporthe Grisea ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Female Fertility ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Gene ◽  
Heterokaryon Formation ◽  
Plant Infection

Fusarium graminearum is an important pathogen of small grains and maize in many areas of the world. Infected grains are often contaminated with mycotoxins harmful to humans and animals. During the past decade, F. graminearum has caused several severe epidemics of head scab in wheat and barley. In order to understand molecular mechanisms regulating fungal development and pathogenicity in this pathogen, we isolated and characterized a MAP kinase gene, MGV1, which is highly homologous to the MPS1 gene in Magnaporthe grisea. The MGV1 gene was dispensable for conidiation in F. graminearum but essential for female fertility during sexual reproduction. Vegetative growth of mgv1 deletion mutants was normal in liquid media but reduced on solid media. Mycelia of the mgv1 mutants had weak cell walls and were hypersensitive to cell wall degrading enzymes. Interestingly, the mgv1 mutants were self-incompatible when tested for heterokaryon formation, and their virulence was substantially reduced. The ability of the mutants to accumulate trichothecene mycotoxins on inoculated wheat was also greatly reduced. Our data suggest that MGV1 in F. graminearum is involved in multiple developmental processes related to sexual reproduction, plant infection, and cell wall integrity.

Srk1 kinase, a SR protein-specific kinase, is important for sexual reproduction, plant infection and pre-mRNA processing in Fusarium graminearum

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (9) ◽  
pp. 3261-3277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guanghui Wang ◽  
Peng Sun ◽  
Ziwen Gong ◽  
Lianfeng Gu ◽  
Yi Lou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Fusarium Graminearum ◽  
Mrna Processing ◽  
Sr Protein ◽  
Plant Infection ◽  
Kinase A

scholarly journals The BMP1 Gene Is Essential for Pathogenicity in the Gray Mold Fungus Botrytis cinerea

2000 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 724-732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Zheng ◽  
Mathew Campbell ◽  
Jennifer Murphy ◽  
Stephen Lam ◽  
Jin-Rong Xu
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Map Kinase ◽  
Botrytis Cinerea ◽  
Magnaporthe Grisea ◽  
Pathogenic Fungi ◽  
Gray Mold ◽  
Necrotrophic Pathogen ◽  
Kinase Gene ◽  
Plant Infection ◽  
Mold Fungus

In Magnaporthe grisea, a well-conserved mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase gene, PMK1, is essential for fungal pathogenesis. In this study, we tested whether the same MAP kinase is essential for plant infection in the gray mold fungus Botrytis cinerea, a necrotrophic pathogen that employs infection mechanisms different from those of M. grisea. We used a polymerase chain reaction-based approach to isolate MAP kinase homologues from B. cinerea. The Botrytis MAP kinase required for pathogenesis (BMP) MAP kinase gene is highly homologous to the M. grisea PMK1. BMP1 is a single-copy gene. bmp1 gene replacement mutants produced normal conidia and mycelia but were reduced in growth rate on nutrient-rich medium. bmp1 mutants were nonpathogenic on carnation flowers and tomato leaves. Re-introduction of the wild-type BMP1 allele into the bmp1 mutant restored both normal growth rate and pathogenicity. Further studies indicated that conidia from bmp1 mutants germinated on plant surfaces but failed to penetrate and macerate plant tissues. bmp1 mutants also appeared to be defective in infecting through wounds. These results indicated that BMP1 is essential for plant infection in B. cinerea, and this MAP kinase pathway may be widely conserved in pathogenic fungi for regulating infection processes.

scholarly journals Salinity stress-induced modification of pectin activates stress signaling pathways and requires HERK/THE and FER to attenuate the response

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora Gigli-Bisceglia ◽  
Eva Van Zelm ◽  
Wenying Huo ◽  
Jasper Lamers ◽  
Christa Testerink
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Salt Stress ◽  
Signaling Pathways ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Marker Gene ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Receptor Like Kinase

AbstractSoil salinity is an increasing worldwide problem for agriculture, affecting plant growth and yield. In our attempt to understand the molecular mechanisms activated in response to salt in plants, we investigated the Catharanthus roseus Receptor like Kinase 1 Like (CrRLK1L) family, which contains well described sensors previously shown to be involved in maintaining and sensing the structural integrity of the cell walls. We have observed that herk1the1-4 double mutants, lacking the function of the Arabidopsis thaliana Receptor like Kinase HERKULES1 combined with a gain of function allele of THESEUS1, phenocopied the phenotypes previously reported in plants lacking FERONIA (FER) function. We report that both fer-4 and herk1the1-4 mutants respond strongly to salt application, resulting in a more intense activation of early and late stress responses. We also show that salt triggers de-methyl esterification of loosely bound pectins. These cell wall modifications might be partly responsible for the activation of the signaling pathways required to activate salt stress responses. In fact, by adding calcium chloride or by chemically inhibiting pectin methyl esterase (PME) activity we observed reduced activation of the early signaling protein Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase 6 (MPK6) as well as a reduced amplitude in salt-induced marker gene induction. We show that MPK6 is required for the full induction of the salt-induced gene expression markers we tested. However, the sodium specific root halotropism response is likely regulated by a different branch of the pathway being independent of MPK6 or calcium application but influenced by the cell wall sensors FER/HERK1/THE1-4 and PME activity. We hypothesize a model where salt-triggered modification of pectin requires the functionality of FER alone or the HERK1/THE1 combination to attenuate salt responses. Collectively, our results show the complexity of salt stress responses and salt sensing mechanisms and their connection to cell wall modifications, likely being in part responsible for the response phenotypes observed in salt treated plants.

scholarly journals FgSfl1 and Its Conserved PKA Phosphorylation Sites Are Important for Conidiation, Sexual Reproduction, and Pathogenesis in Fusarium graminearum

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. 755
Author(s):  
Chen Gong ◽  
Junqi Huang ◽  
Daiyuan Sun ◽  
Daiying Xu ◽  
Yuqian Guo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Fusarium Graminearum ◽  
Double Mutant ◽  
Deletion Mutant ◽  
Phosphorylation Site ◽  
Phosphorylation Sites ◽  
Catalytic Subunits ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Plant Infection ◽  
Dependent Protein

The fungal plant pathogen, Fusarium graminearum, contains two genes, FgCPK1 and FgCPK2, encoding the catalytic subunits of cAMP-dependent protein kinase A. FgCPK1 and FgCPK2 are responsible for most of the PKA activities and have overlapping functions in various cellular processes in F. graminearum. The cpk1 cpk2 double mutant was significantly reduced in growth, rarely produced conidia, and was non-pathogenic. In this study, we found that the cpk1 cpk2 double mutant was unstable and produced fast-growing spontaneous sectors that were defective in plant infection. All spontaneous suppressor strains had mutations in FgSFL1, a transcription factor gene orthologous to SFL1 in yeast. Thirteen suppressor strains had non-sense mutations at Q501, three suppressor strains had frameshift mutations at W198, and five suppressor strains had mutations in the HSF binding domain of FgSfl1. Only one suppressor strain had both a non-synonymous mutation at H225 and a non-sense mutation at R490. We generated the SFL1 deletion mutant and found that it produced less than 2% of conidia than that of the wild-type strain PH-1. The sfl1 mutant was significantly reduced in the number of perithecia on carrot agar plates at 7 days post-fertilization (dpf). When incubated for more than 12 days, ascospore cirrhi were observed on the sfl1 mutant perithecia. The infection ability of the sfl1 deletion mutant was also obviously defective. Furthermore, we found that in addition to the S223 and S559 phosphorylation sites, FgSFL1 had another predicted phosphorylation site: T452. Interestingly, the S223 phosphorylation site was responsible for sexual reproduction, and the T452 phosphorylation site was responsible for growth and sexual reproduction. Only the S559 phosphorylation site was found to play an important role in conidiation, sexual reproduction, and infection. Overall, our results indicate that FgSFL1 and its conserved PKA phosphorylation sites are important for vegetative growth, conidiation, sexual reproduction, and pathogenesis in F. graminearum.

scholarly journals MST12 Regulates Infectious Growth But Not Appressorium Formation in the Rice Blast Fungus Magnaporthe grisea

2002 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 183-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gyungsoon Park ◽  
Chaoyang Xue ◽  
Li Zheng ◽  
Stephen Lam ◽  
Jin-Rong Xu
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Rice Blast ◽  
Magnaporthe Grisea ◽  
Rice Blast Fungus ◽  
Gene Replacement ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Gene ◽  
Blast Fungus ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein ◽  
Barley Leaves

In the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe grisea, a mitogen-activated protein kinase gene, PMK1, is known to regulate ap-pressorium formation and infectious hyphae growth. Since PMK1 is homologous to the FUS3 and KSS1 genes that regulate the transcription factor STE12 in yeast, we functionally characterized the STE12 homologue in M. grisea (MST12). A polymerase chain reaction-based approach was used to isolate the MST12 gene that is homologous to yeast STE12. Four mst12 deletion mutants were isolated by gene replacement. No obvious defect in vegetative growth, conidiation, or conidia germination was observed in mst12 mutants. However, mst12 mutants were nonpathogenic on rice and barley leaves. In contrast to pmk1 mutants that did not form appressoria, mst12 mutants produced typical dome-shaped and melanized appressoria. However, the ap-pressoria formed by mst12 mutants failed to penetrate onion epidermal cells. When inoculated through wound sites, mst12 mutants failed to cause spreading lesions and appeared to be defective in infectious growth. These data indicate that MST12 may function downstream of PMK1 to regulate genes involved in infectious hyphae growth. A transcription factor or factors other than MST12 must exist in M. grisea and function downstream from PMK1 for ap-pressorium formation.

scholarly journals Random Insertional Mutagenesis Identifies Genes Associated with Virulence in the Wheat Scab Fungus Fusarium graminearum

2005 ◽  
Vol 95 (7) ◽  
pp. 744-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyeyong Seong ◽  
Zhanming Hou ◽  
Miles Tracy ◽  
H. Corby Kistler ◽  
Jin-Rong Xu
Keyword(s):  
Fusarium Graminearum ◽  
Insertional Mutagenesis ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Gene Replacement ◽  
Start Codon ◽  
Fungal Virulence ◽  
Ubiquinone Oxidoreductase ◽  
Plant Infection ◽  
Nadh Ubiquinone Oxidoreductase ◽  
Small Grains

Fusarium graminearum is an important pathogen of small grains and maize in many areas of the world. To better understand the molecular mechanisms of F. graminearum pathogenesis, we used the restriction enzyme-mediated integration (REMI) approach to generate random insertional mutants. Eleven pathogenicity mutants were identified by screening 6,500 hygromycin-resistant transformants. Genetic analyses indicated that the defects in plant infection were tagged by the transforming vector in six of these mutants. In mutant M8, the transforming plasmid was integrated 110-bp upstream from the start codon of the cystathionine betalyase gene (CBL1). Gene replacement mutants deleted for CBL1 and the methionine synthase gene MSY1 were also obtained. Both the cbl1 and msy1 deletion mutants were methionine auxotrophic and significantly reduced in virulence on corn silks and wheat heads. We also identified genes disrupted by the transforming DNA in three other REMI mutants exhibiting reduced virulence. In mutants M68, the transforming vectors were inserted in the NADH: ubiquinone oxidoreductase. The putative b-ZIP transcription factor gene and the transducin beta-subunit-like gene disrupted in mutants M7 and M75, respectively, had no known homologs in filamentous fungi and were likely to be novel fungal virulence factors.

scholarly journals NADPH Oxidase ClNOX2 Regulates Melanin-Mediated Development and Virulence in Curvularia lunata

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 1315-1329
Author(s):  
Fen Wang ◽  
Weida Gao ◽  
Jiaying Sun ◽  
Xiuwen Mao ◽  
Kexin Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Signaling Pathway ◽  
Hyphal Growth ◽  
Conidial Germination ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Ros Generation ◽  
Deletion Mutants ◽  
Curvularia Lunata ◽  
Kinase Gene ◽  
Melanin Biosynthesis

The role of NADPH oxidases (NOXs) in pathogenesis and development in the Curvularia leaf spot agent Curvularia lunata remains poorly understood. In this study, we identified C. lunata ClNOX2, which localized to the plasma membrane and was responsible for reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. Scavenging the ROS production inhibited the conidial germination and appressorial formation. The ClNOX2 and ClBRN1 deletion mutants were defective in 1,8-dihydroxynaphthalene (DHN) melanin accumulation, appressorial formation, and cellulase synthesis and exhibited lower virulence. However, disruption of the ClNOX2 and ClBRN1 genes facilitated hyphal growth, enhanced stress adaptation to cell-wall-disrupting agents, and promoted developmental processes such as conidiation, conidial germination, and pseudothecium and ascus formation. Interestingly, loss of ClM1, the cell wall integrity (CWI) mitogen-activated protein kinase gene in C. lunata, led to morphology and pathogenicity phenotypes similar to ClNOX2 and ClBRN1 deletion mutants such as abnormal conidia, fewer appressoria, less melanin, increased hyphal growth, and enhanced tolerance to Congo red (CR). These results indicated that the ClNOX2 gene plays an important role in C. lunata development and virulence via regulating intracellular DHN melanin biosynthesis. Quantitative reverse-transcription PCR revealed that the ClNOX2-related ROS signaling pathway and ClM1-mediated CWI signaling pathway are cross-linked in regulating DHN melanin biosynthesis. Our findings provide new insights into how ClNOX2 participates in pathogenesis and development in hemibiotrophic plant fungal pathogens. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2020 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

scholarly journals Wheat transcriptome profiling reveals abscisic and gibberellic acid treatments regulate early-stage phytohormone defense signaling, cell wall fortification, and metabolic switches following Fusarium graminearum-challenge

BMC Genomics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leann M. Buhrow ◽  
Ziying Liu ◽  
Dustin Cram ◽  
Tanya Sharma ◽  
Nora A. Foroud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Gibberellic Acid ◽  
Secondary Metabolism ◽  
Fusarium Graminearum ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Molecular Transport ◽  
Defense Responses ◽  
Head Blight ◽  
Primary And Secondary Metabolism

Abstract Background Treatment of wheat with the phytohormones abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellic acid (GA) has been shown to affect Fusarium head blight (FHB) disease severity. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the elicited phenotypes remain unclear. Toward addressing this gap in our knowledge, global transcriptomic profiling was applied to the FHB-susceptible wheat cultivar ‘Fielder’ to map the regulatory responses effected upon treatment with ABA, an ABA receptor antagonist (AS6), or GA in the presence or absence of Fusarium graminearum (Fg) challenge. Results Spike treatments resulted in a total of 30,876 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified in ‘Fielder’ (26,004) and the Fg (4872) pathogen. Topology overlap and correlation analyses defined 9689 wheat DEGs as Fg-related across the treatments. Further enrichment analyses demonstrated that these included expression changes within ‘Fielder’ defense responses, cell structural metabolism, molecular transport, and membrane/lipid metabolism. Dysregulation of ABA and GA crosstalk arising from repression of ‘Fielder’ FUS3 was noted. As well, expression of a putative Fg ABA-biosynthetic cytochrome P450 was detected. The co-applied condition of Fg + ABA elicited further up-regulation of phytohormone biosynthesis, as well as SA and ET signaling pathways and cell wall/polyphenolic metabolism. In contrast, co-applied Fg + GA mainly suppressed phytohormone biosynthesis and signaling, while modulating primary and secondary metabolism and flowering. Unexpectedly, co-applied Fg + AS6 did not affect ABA biosynthesis or signaling, but rather elicited antagonistic responses tied to stress, phytohormone transport, and FHB disease-related genes. Conclusions Observed exacerbation (misregulation) of classical defense mechanisms and cell wall fortifications upon ABA treatment are consistent with its ability to promote FHB severity and its proposed role as a fungal effector. In contrast, GA was found to modulate primary and secondary metabolism, suggesting a general metabolic shift underlying its reduction in FHB severity. While AS6 did not antagonize traditional ABA pathways, its impact on host defense and Fg responses imply potential for future investigation. Overall, by comparing these findings to those previously reported for four additional plant genotypes, an additive model of the wheat-Fg interaction is proposed in the context of phytohormone responses.

scholarly journals Novel Antifungal Compound Z-705 Specifically Inhibits Protein Kinase C of Filamentous Fungi

2019 ◽  
Vol 85 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asumi Sugahara ◽  
Akira Yoshimi ◽  
Fumio Shoji ◽  
Tomonori Fujioka ◽  
Kiyoshi Kawai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Protein Kinase C ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Filamentous Fungi ◽  
Magnaporthe Grisea ◽  
Rice Blast Fungus ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Kinase C ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein

ABSTRACTThe cell wall integrity signaling (CWIS) pathway is involved in fungal cell wall biogenesis. This pathway is composed of sensor proteins, protein kinase C (PKC), and the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, and it controls the transcription of many cell wall-related genes. PKC plays a pivotal role in this pathway; deficiencies in PkcA in the model filamentous fungusAspergillus nidulansand in MgPkc1p in the rice blast fungusMagnaporthe griseaare lethal. This suggests that PKC in filamentous fungi is a potential target for antifungal agents. In the present study, to search for MgPkc1p inhibitors, we carried outin silicoscreening by three-dimensional (3D) structural modeling and performed growth inhibition tests forM. griseaon agar plates. From approximately 800,000 candidate compounds, we selected Z-705 and evaluated its inhibitory activity against chimeric PKC expressed inSaccharomyces cerevisiaecells in which the kinase domain of nativeS. cerevisiaePKC was replaced with those of PKCs of filamentous fungi. Transcriptional analysis ofMLP1, which encodes a downstream factor of PKC inS. cerevisiae, and phosphorylation analysis of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) Mpk1p, which is activated downstream of PKC, revealed that Z-705 specifically inhibited PKCs of filamentous fungi. Moreover, the inhibitory activity of Z-705 was similar to that of a well-known PKC inhibitor, staurosporine. Interestingly, Z-705 inhibited melanization induced by cell wall stress inM. grisea. We discuss the relationships between PKC and melanin biosynthesis.IMPORTANCEA candidate inhibitor of filamentous fungal protein kinase C (PKC), Z-705, was identified byin silicoscreening. A screening system to evaluate the effects of fungal PKC inhibitors was constructed inSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Using this system, we found that Z-705 is highly selective for filamentous fungal PKC in comparison withS. cerevisiaePKC. Analysis of theAGS1mRNA level, which is regulated by Mps1p mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) via PKC, in the rice blast fungusMagnaporthe grisearevealed that Z-705 had a PKC inhibitory effect comparable to that of staurosporine. Micafungin induced hyphal melanization inM. grisea, and this melanization, which is required for pathogenicity ofM. grisea, was inhibited by PKC inhibition by both Z-705 and staurosporine. The mRNA levels of4HNR,3HNR, andSCD1, which are essential for melanization inM. grisea, were suppressed by both PKC inhibitors.

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