Genetics of Cordyceps and related fungi

Zheng, Peng; Xia, Yongliang; Zhang, Siwei; Wang, Chengshu

doi:10.1007/s00253-013-4771-7

Cited by 52 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 57 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The putative elicitin, CBEL, and CRN proteins may reflect the evolution of L. giganteum from a plant to an insect pathogen and may indicate that L. giganteum can establish symbiotic and/or pathogenic interactions with plants. This hypothesis is remarkably similar to the recent analyses indicating that entomopathogenic fungi evolved from plant pathogens and endophytes and have retained the ability to establish endophytic relationships (62)(63)(64). Combined evidence from the filamentous entomopathogens Metarhizium anisopliae and L. giganteum suggests that entomopathogenicity has evolved from plant-associated microbes in two independent and phylogenetically distant eukaryotic lineages.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 71%

Transcriptome Analysis of the Entomopathogenic Oomycete Lagenidium giganteum Reveals Putative Virulence Factors

Velasquez

Abiff

Fins

et al. 2014

Appl Environ Microbiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A combination of 454 pyrosequencing and Sanger sequencing was used to sample and characterize the transcriptome of the entomopathogenic oomycete Lagenidium giganteum. More than 50,000 high-throughput reads were annotated through homology searches. Several selected reads served as seeds for the amplification and sequencing of full-length transcripts. Phylogenetic analyses inferred from full-length cellulose synthase alignments revealed that L giganteum is nested within the peronosporalean galaxy and as such appears to have evolved from a phytopathogenic ancestor. In agreement with the phylogeny reconstructions, full-length L. giganteum oomycete effector orthologs, corresponding to the cellulose-binding elicitor lectin (CBEL), crinkler (CRN), and elicitin proteins, were characterized by domain organizations similar to those of pathogenicity factors of plantpathogenic oomycetes. Importantly, the L. giganteum effectors provide a basis for detailing the roles of canonical CRN, CBEL, and elicitin proteins in the infectious process of an oomycete known principally as an animal pathogen. Finally, phylogenetic analyses and genome mining identified members of glycoside hydrolase family 5 subfamily 27 (GH5_27) as putative virulence factors active on the host insect cuticle, based in part on the fact that GH5_27 genes are shared by entomopathogenic oomycetes and fungi but are underrepresented in nonentomopathogenic genomes. The genomic resources gathered from the L. giganteum transcriptome analysis strongly suggest that filamentous entomopathogens (oomycetes and fungi) exhibit convergent evolution: they have evolved independently from plant-associated microbes, have retained genes indicative of plant associations, and may share similar cores of virulence factors, such as GH5_27 enzymes, that are absent from the genomes of their plant-pathogenic relatives.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 71%

Transcriptome Analysis of the Entomopathogenic Oomycete Lagenidium giganteum Reveals Putative Virulence Factors

Velasquez

Abiff

Fins

et al. 2014

Appl Environ Microbiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…On the other hand, MAJ and MGU genome sizes and encoding capacities are similar to those of generalist species. In addition, the presence of both MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 in MAJ suggests a homothallic pattern that differs from the heterothallic nature of other clavicipitacean species (46). Analysis of the MAT loci in mammalian pathogenic Cryptococcus spp.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Trajectory and genomic determinants of fungal-pathogen speciation and host adaptation

Xiao

Zheng

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

258

276

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Much remains unknown regarding speciation. Host-pathogen interactions are a major driving force for diversification, but the genomic basis for speciation and host shifting remains unclear. The fungal genus Metarhizium contains species ranging from specialists with very narrow host ranges to generalists that attack a wide range of insects. By genomic analyses of seven species, we demonstrated that generalists evolved from specialists via transitional species with intermediate host ranges and that this shift paralleled insect evolution. We found that specialization was associated with retention of sexuality and rapid evolution of existing protein sequences whereas generalization was associated with protein-family expansion, loss of genome-defense mechanisms, genome restructuring, horizontal gene transfer, and positive selection that accelerated after reinforcement of reproductive isolation. These results advance understanding of speciation and genomic signatures that underlie pathogen adaptation to hosts.peciation is a central component of biological diversification and is increasingly viewed as a continuum or process rather than an event. However, failure to identify transitional species has hindered progress in understanding genomic patterns of divergence along the speciation continuum (1). Plant or animal pathogenic fungi are genetically tractable models for the study of speciation due to their diverse lifestyles and the occurrence of sibling species that differ from each other principally in host specificity (2, 3). However, fundamental questions remain, including whether generalization or specialization to particular hosts is the ancestral condition, whether we can identify the existence of transitional forms, and what are the underlying molecular mechanisms driving speciation (4).We exploited the ascomycete genus Metarhizium, a radiating lineage of insect pathogens that are frequently used as biological insecticides (5, 6) and for genomic studies into the nature of adaptive differences by which novel pathogens emerge and form new species. Besides the previously sequenced Metarhizium robertsii (abbreviated as MAA) and Metarhizium acridum (MAC) (7), five new species were sequenced: Metarhizium album (MAM), Metarhizium majus (MAJ), Metarhizium guizhouense (MGU), Metarhizium brunneum (MBR), and Metarhizium anisopliae (MAN) (Dataset S1, Table S1). MAM is specific for hemipteran insects (8) whereas MAJ and MGU have intermediate host ranges as they are predominately associated with coleopteran insects but can also infect lepidopterans (9). Like MAA, MBR and MAN are generalists parasitizing a broad range of insects representing more than seven orders (10,11). Generalist species such as MAA and MBR can also colonize the roots of plants (12), consistent with increased phenotypic flexibility.Our analyses revealed that the evolutionary trajectory of Metarhizium spp. was from specialists via intermediate host range species to generalists that coincided with host insect diversification and availability. This host adaptati...

show abstract

“…is considered to be Metacordyceps spp. ; however, their heterothallic sexual cycles are largely cryptic (49). Future studies are still required to investigate whether MBZ1 is involved in controlling sexuality in M. robertsii as FGZIF1 and FGATF1 control sex cycles in F. graminearum (10,12).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Basic Leucine Zipper (bZIP) Domain Transcription Factor MBZ1 Regulates Cell Wall Integrity, Spore Adherence, and Virulence in Metarhizium robertsii

Huang

Shang

Chen

et al. 2015

Journal of Biological Chemistry

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background:The bZIP-type transcription factors are widely distributed in eukaryotes to control an array of biological activities. Results: MBZ1 from Metarhizium robertsii regulates fungal growth, cell wall integrity, spore adherence, and virulence against insects. Conclusion: MBZ1 is required for development and virulence of insect pathogenic fungi. Significance: The orthologs of bZIP-type transcription factors are functionally divergent in different organisms.

show abstract

Genetics of Cordyceps and related fungi

Cited by 52 publications

References 57 publications

Transcriptome Analysis of the Entomopathogenic Oomycete Lagenidium giganteum Reveals Putative Virulence Factors

Transcriptome Analysis of the Entomopathogenic Oomycete Lagenidium giganteum Reveals Putative Virulence Factors

Trajectory and genomic determinants of fungal-pathogen speciation and host adaptation

Basic Leucine Zipper (bZIP) Domain Transcription Factor MBZ1 Regulates Cell Wall Integrity, Spore Adherence, and Virulence in Metarhizium robertsii

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About