Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a ubiquitous necrotrophic pathogenic fungus causing significant losses in a broad range of plant species. Sclerotia formed by S. sclerotiorum play important roles in both the fungal life cycle and the disease development cycle. Sclerotial exudation during sclerotial development is a characteristic feature of this fungus. In this study, a proteome-level investigation of proteins present in sclerotial exudates was conducted by high-throughput LC–MS/MS analysis. A total of 258 proteins were identified, in which 193 were annotated by GO annotation and 54 were classified by KEGG analysis. Four proteins related to plant cell wall degradation were further validated by measuring the corresponding enzymatic activity of the sclerotial exudates and/or by assessing the gene expression during sclerotial development. Results indicated that the proteins identified in sclerotial exudates help in the development of sclerotia and contribute to host cell necrosis caused by S. sclerotiorum. Furthermore, we proposed that sclerotial exudates can degrade plant cell walls to release carbohydrates that provide nutrition for fungal growth and possibly facilitate fungal cell wall assembly in developing sclerotia. This study also provides new insights on the morphogenesis and pathogenicity of other sclerotia-forming fungi.

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