Cell Fusion May Be Involved in the Homothallic Mating of
            <i>Pneumocystis</i>
            Species

Hauser, Philippe M.; Almeida, João M. G. C. F.; Richard, Sophie; Meier, Caroline S

doi:10.1128/mbio.00859-22

mBio

2022

DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00859-22

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Cell Fusion May Be Involved in the Homothallic Mating of Pneumocystis Species

Philippe M. Hauser

João M. G. C. F. Almeida

Sophie Richard

et al.

Abstract: Pneumocystis species are obligate fungal biotrophs that colonize the lungs of mammals. They cause deadly pneumonia in immunocompromised hosts.

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2024

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Retracing the evolution of Pneumocystis species, with a focus on the human pathogen Pneumocystis jirovecii

Cissé,

Ma,

Kovacs

2024

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev

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SUMMARY Every human being is presumed to be infected by the fungus Pneumocystis jirovecii at least once in his or her lifetime. This fungus belongs to a large group of species that appear to exclusively infect mammals, with P. jirovecii being the only one known to cause disease in humans. The mystery of P. jirovecii origin and speciation is just beginning to unravel. Here, we provide a review of the major steps of P. jirovecii evolution. The Pneumocystis genus likely originated from soil or plant-associated organisms during the period of Cretaceous ~165 million years ago and successfully shifted to mammals. The transition coincided with a substantial loss of genes, many of which are related to the synthesis of nutrients that can be scavenged from hosts or cell wall components that could be targeted by the mammalian immune system. Following the transition, the Pneumocystis genus cospeciated with mammals. Each species specialized at infecting its own host. Host specialization is presumably built at least partially upon surface glycoproteins, whose protogene was acquired prior to the genus formation. P. jirovecii appeared at ~65 million years ago, overlapping with the emergence of the first primates. P. jirovecii and its sister species P. macacae , which infects macaques nowadays, may have had overlapping host ranges in the distant past. Clues from molecular clocks suggest that P. jirovecii did not cospeciate with humans. Molecular evidence suggests that Pneumocystis speciation involved chromosomal rearrangements and the mounting of genetic barriers that inhibit gene flow among species.

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Retracing the evolution of Pneumocystis species, with a focus on the human pathogen Pneumocystis jirovecii

Cissé,

Ma,

Kovacs

2024

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

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Cell Fusion May Be Involved in the Homothallic Mating of Pneumocystis Species

Abstract: Pneumocystis species are obligate fungal biotrophs that colonize the lungs of mammals. They cause deadly pneumonia in immunocompromised hosts.

Cited by 1 publication

References 35 publications

Retracing the evolution of Pneumocystis species, with a focus on the human pathogen Pneumocystis jirovecii

Retracing the evolution of Pneumocystis species, with a focus on the human pathogen Pneumocystis jirovecii

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