Identification of the sex genes in an early diverged fungus

Sex determination in fungi is controlled by a small, specialized region of the genome in contrast to the large sex-specific chromosomes of animals and some plants. Different gene combinations reside at these mating-type (MAT) loci and confer sexual identity; invariably they encode homeodomain, alpha-box, or high mobility group (HMG)-domain transcription factors. So far, MAT loci have been characterized from a single monophyletic clade of fungi, the Dikarya (the ascomycetes and basidiomycetes), and the ancestral state and evolutionary history of these loci have remained a mystery. Mating in the basal members of the kingdom has been less well studied, and even their precise taxonomic inter-relationships are still obscure. Here we apply bioinformatic and genetic mapping to identify the sex-determining (sex) region in Phycomyces blakesleeanus (Zygomycota), which represents an early branch within the fungi. Each sex allele contains a single gene that encodes an HMG-domain protein, implicating the HMG-domain proteins as an earlier form of fungal MAT loci. Additionally, one allele also contains a copy of a unique, chromosome-specific repetitive element, suggesting a generalized mechanism for the earliest steps in the evolution of sex determination and sex chromosome structure in eukaryotes.

Fungal pathogenesis: gene clusters unveiled as secrets within the Ustilago maydis code

The genome sequence of a second plant pathogenic fungus is now available, revealing unique gene clusters encoding secretory proteins that are induced during infection and regulate pathogenesis. Gene clusters play important roles in pathogenic fungi, yet their evolution and maintenance remain a mystery.

Eca1, a sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase, is involved in stress tolerance and virulence in Cryptococcus neoformans

The basidiomycetous fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans is adapted to survive challenges in the soil and environment and within the unique setting of the mammalian host. A C. neoformans mutant was isolated with enhanced virulence in a soil amoeba model that nevertheless exhibits dramatically reduced growth at mammalian body temperature (37 degrees C). This mutant phenotype results from an insertion in the ECA1 gene, which encodes a sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA)-type calcium pump. Infection in murine macrophages, amoebae (Acanthamoeba castellanii), nematodes (Caenorhabditis elegans), and wax moth (Galleria mellonella) larvae revealed that the eca1 mutants are virulent or hypervirulent at permissive growth temperatures but attenuated at 37 degrees C. Deletion mutants lacking the entire ECA1 gene were also hypersensitive to the calcineurin inhibitors cyclosporin and FK506 and to ER and osmotic stresses. An eca1Delta cna1Delta mutant lacking both Eca1 and the calcineurin catalytic subunit was more sensitive to high temperature and ER stresses than the single mutants and exhibited reduced survival in C. elegans and attenuated virulence towards wax moth larvae at temperatures that permit normal growth in vitro. Eca1 is likely involved in maintaining ER function, thus contributing to stress tolerance and virulence acting in parallel with Ca2+-calcineurin signaling.

Sensing the environment: lessons from fungi

All living organisms use numerous signal-transduction systems to sense and respond to their environments and thereby survive and proliferate in a range of biological niches. Molecular dissection of these signalling networks has increased our understanding of these communication processes and provides a platform for therapeutic intervention when these pathways malfunction in disease states, including infection. Owing to the expanding availability of sequenced genomes, a wealth of genetic and molecular tools and the conservation of signalling networks, members of the fungal kingdom serve as excellent model systems for more complex, multicellular organisms. Here, we review recent progress in our understanding of how fungal-signalling circuits operate at the molecular level to sense and respond to a plethora of environmental cues.

Recombination hotspots flank the Cryptococcus mating-type locus: implications for the evolution of a fungal sex chromosome

Recombination increases dramatically during meiosis to promote genetic exchange and generate recombinant progeny. Interestingly, meiotic recombination is unevenly distributed throughout genomes, and, as a consequence, genetic and physical map distances do not have a simple linear relationship. Recombination hotspots and coldspots have been described in many organisms and often reflect global features of chromosome structure. In particular, recombination frequencies are often distorted within or outside sex-determining regions of the genome. Here, we report that recombination is elevated adjacent to the mating-type locus (MAT) in the pathogenic basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans. Among fungi, C. neoformans has an unusually large MAT locus, and recombination is suppressed between the two >100-kilobase mating-type specific alleles. When genetic markers were introduced at defined physical distances from MAT, we found the meiotic recombination frequency to be ~20% between MAT and a flanking marker at 5, 10, 50, or 100 kilobases from the right border. As a result, the physical/genetic map ratio in the regions adjacent to MAT is distorted ~10- to 50-fold compared to the genome-wide average. Moreover, recombination frequently occurred on both sides of MAT and negative interference between crossovers was observed. MAT heterozygosity was not required for enhanced recombination, implying that this process is not due to a physical distortion from the two non-paired alleles and could also occur during same-sex mating. Sequence analysis revealed a correlation between high G + C content and these hotspot regions. We hypothesize that the presence of recombinational activators may have driven several key events during the assembly and reshaping of the MAT locus and may have played similar roles in the origins of both metabolic and biosynthetic gene clusters. Our findings suggest that during meiosis the MAT locus may be exchanged onto different genetic backgrounds and therefore have broad evolutionary implications with respect to mating-type switching in both model and pathogenic yeasts.

It is hypothesized that sexual reproduction enables genetic recombination between individuals to generate diversity, thus increasing population fitness. However, a well-known meiotic feature is that recombination is not randomly distributed across the genome: “coldspots” and “hotspots” exist, implying some regions undergo exchange more frequently. In this paper, the authors report the discovery of recombination hotspots linked to the sex-determining region mating-type locus (MAT) in the human pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans. Through genetic analysis, hotspots were found to reside on both sides of MAT and are associated with DNA regions marked by high G + C base pair composition. Moreover, recombination on one side of MAT is associated with a recombination on the other. As a result, the MAT locus can be replaced onto the homologous chromosome as a unit—an effective switch of MAT. Based on these findings, they propose that the MAT-linked recombination hotspots impacted key steps during MAT evolution. This study has broader implications on how gene clusters (including those involved in metabolism or secondary metabolite production) are assembled and maintained and explains how recombination is distorted in sex-determining regions in eukaryotes.

Peroxisome function regulates growth on glucose in the basidiomycete fungus Cryptococcus neoformans

The function of the peroxisomes was examined in the pathogenic basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans. Recent studies reveal the glyoxylate pathway is required for virulence of diverse microbial pathogens of plants and animals. One exception is C. neoformans, in which isocitrate lyase (encoded by ICL1) was previously shown not to be required for virulence, and here this was extended to exclude also a role for malate synthase (encoded by MLS1). The role of peroxisomes, in which the glyoxylate pathway enzymes are localized in many organisms, was examined by mutation of two genes (PEX1 and PEX6) encoding AAA (ATPases associated with various cellular activities)-type proteins required for peroxisome formation. The pex1 and pex6 deletion mutants were unable to localize the fluorescent DsRED-SKL protein to peroxisomal punctate structures, in contrast to wild-type cells. pex1 and pex6 single mutants and a pex1 pex6 double mutant exhibit identical phenotypes, including abolished growth on fatty acids but no growth difference on acetate. Because both icl1 and mls1 mutants are unable to grow on acetate as the sole carbon source, these findings demonstrate that the glyoxylate pathway can function efficiently outside the peroxisome in C. neoformans. The pex1 mutant exhibits wild-type virulence in a murine inhalation model and in an insect host, demonstrating that peroxisomes are not required for virulence under these conditions. An unusual phenotype of the pex1 and pex6 mutants was that they grew poorly with glucose as the carbon source, but nearly wild type with galactose, which suggested impaired hexokinase function and that C. neoformans peroxisomes might function analogously to the glycosomes of the trypanosomid parasites. Deletion of the hexokinase HXK2 gene reduced growth in the presence of glucose and suppressed the growth defect of the pex1 mutant on glucose. The hexokinase 2 protein of C. neoformans contains a predicted peroxisome targeting signal (type 2) motif; however, Hxk2 fused to fluorescent proteins was not localized to peroxisomes. Thus, we hypothesize that glucose or glycolytic metabolites are utilized in the peroxisome by an as yet unidentified enzyme or regulate a pathway required by the fungus in the absence of peroxisomes.

Conserved elements of the RAM signaling pathway establish cell polarity in the basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans in a divergent fashion from other fungi

In eukaryotes the complex processes of development, differentiation, and proliferation require carefully orchestrated changes in cellular morphology. Single-celled eukaryotes provide tractable models for the elucidation of signaling pathways involved in morphogenesis. Here we describe a pathway regulating cell polarization and separation in the human pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans. An insertional mutagenesis screen identified roles for the ARF1, CAP60, NDH1, KIC1, CBK1, SOG2, and TAO3 genes in establishing normal colony morphology. ARF1 and CAP60 are also required for capsule production, a virulence factor, and ARF1 confers resistance to the antifungal fluconazole. KIC1, CBK1, SOG2, and TAO3 are homologues of genes conserved in other eukaryotes; in Saccharomyces cerevisiae they constitute components of the RAM (regulation of Ace2p activity and cellular morphogenesis) signaling pathway. A targeted deletion of a fifth component of RAM (MOB2) conferred identical phenotypes to kic1, cbk1, sog2, or tao3 mutations. Characterization of these genes in C. neoformans revealed unique features of the RAM pathway in this organism. Loss of any of these genes caused constitutive hyperpolarization instead of the loss of polarity seen in S. cerevisiae. Furthermore, sensitivity to the drugs FK506 and cyclosporin A demonstrates that the RAM pathway acts in parallel with the protein phosphatase calcineurin in C. neoformans but not in S. cerevisiae. These results indicate that conserved signaling pathways serve both similar and divergent cellular roles in morphogenesis in these divergent organisms.

Photosensing fungi: phytochrome in the spotlight

Red light triggers asexual development and represses sexual development in the fungus Aspergillus nidulans. This response has been shown to require a phytochrome red/far-red light photoreceptor, FphA, which is cytoplasmic and binds a tetrapyrrole chromophore. FphA exhibits similarities to both plant and bacterial phytochromes.

The Phycomyces madA gene encodes a blue-light photoreceptor for phototropism and other light responses

Phycomyces blakesleeanus is a filamentous zygomycete fungus that produces striking elongated single cells that extend up to 10 cm into the air, with each such sporangiophore supporting a sphere containing the spores for dispersal. This organism has served as a model for the detection of environmental signals as diverse as light, chemicals, touch, wind, gravity, and adjacent objects. In particular, sporangiophore growth is regulated by light, and it exhibits phototropism by bending toward near-UV and blue wavelengths and away from far-UV wavelengths in a manner that is physiologically similar to plant phototropic responses. The Phycomyces madA mutants were first isolated more than 40 years ago, and they exhibit reduced sensitivity to light. Here, we identify two (duplicated) homologs in the White Collar 1 family of blue-light photoreceptors in Phycomyces. We describe that the madA mutant strains contain point mutations in one of these genes and that these mutations cosegregate with a defect in phototropism after genetic crosses. Thus, the phototropic responses of fungi through madA and plants through phototropin rely on diverse proteins; however, these proteins share a conserved flavin-binding domain for photon detection.

Cryptococcus neoformans gene involved in mammalian pathogenesis identified by a Caenorhabditis elegans progeny-based approach

Caenorhabditis elegans can serve as a substitute host for the study of microbial pathogenesis. We found that mutations in genes of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans involved in mammalian virulence allow C. elegans to produce greater numbers of progeny than when exposed to wild-type fungus. We used this property to screen a library of C. neoformans mutants for strains that permit larger C. elegans brood sizes. In this screen, we identified a gene homologous to Saccharomyces cerevisiae ROM2. C. neoformans rom2 mutation resulted in a defect in mating and growth defects at elevated temperature or in the presence of cell wall or hyperosmolar stresses. An effect of the C. neoformans rom2 mutation in virulence was confirmed in a murine inhalation infection model. We propose that a screen for progeny-permissive mutants of microorganisms can serve as a high-throughput method for identifying novel loci related to mammalian pathogenesis.

Deciphering the model pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans

Cryptococcus neoformans is a basidiomycete fungal pathogen of humans that has diverged considerably from other model fungi such as Neurospora crassa, Aspergillus nidulans, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the common human fungal pathogen Candida albicans. The recent completion of the genome sequences of two related C. neoformans strains and the ongoing genome sequencing of three other divergent Cryptococcus strains with different virulence phenotypes and environmental distributions should improve our understanding of this important pathogen. We discuss the biology of C. neoformans in light of this genomic data, with a special emphasis on the role that evolution and sexual reproduction have in the complex relationships of the fungus with the environment and the host.

Novel gene functions required for melanization of the human pathogenCryptococcus neoformans

The ability to produce melanin is a key virulence factor in many fungal pathogens including the human basidiomycete pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, a major cause of life-threatening infections among immunocompromised persons. Despite the significance of melanin biosynthesis in virulence of C. neoformans, the cellular and molecular processes involved in this pathway have not yet been fully elucidated. Here, we used Agrobacterium to isolate insertional mutants and screened 12 000 mutants to uncover genes involved in melanin production in C. neoformans. Four new mutant alleles of the well-known melanin biosynthesis gene, LAC1, which encodes laccase were identified, and the T-DNA was shown to have a possible predisposition for insertion into the promoters of genes, in particular LAC1. Melanization in C. neoformans is dependent on five additional genes identified in this screen encoding homologues of the copper transporter Ccc2, the copper chaperone Atx1, the chitin synthase Chs3, the transcriptional coactivator Mbf1 and the chromatin-remodelling enzyme Snf5. Illumination of the molecular and genetic components of this virulence pathway reveals potential novel targets for drug development against C. neoformans and provides further insight into the intimate relationship between metal ion homeostasis and melanin biosynthesis.

Galleria mellonella as a model system to study Cryptococcus neoformans pathogenesis

Evaluation of Cryptococcus neoformans virulence in a number of nonmammalian hosts suggests that C. neoformans is a nonspecific pathogen. We used the killing of Galleria mellonella (the greater wax moth) caterpillar by C. neoformans to develop an invertebrate host model system that can be used to study cryptococcal virulence, host immune responses to infection, and the effects of antifungal compounds. All varieties of C. neoformans killed G. mellonella. After injection into the insect hemocoel, C. neoformans proliferated and, despite successful phagocytosis by host hemocytes, killed caterpillars both at 37 degrees C and 30 degrees C. The rate and extent of killing depended on the cryptococcal strain and the number of fungal cells injected. The sequenced C. neoformans clinical strain H99 was the most virulent of the strains tested and killed caterpillars with inocula as low as 20 CFU/caterpillar. Several C. neoformans genes previously shown to be involved in mammalian virulence (CAP59, GPA1, RAS1, and PKA1) also played a role in G. mellonella killing. Combination antifungal therapy (amphotericin B plus flucytosine) administered before or after inoculation was more effective than monotherapy in prolonging survival and in decreasing the tissue burden of cryptococci in the hemocoel. The G. mellonella-C. neoformans pathogenicity model may be a substitute for mammalian models of infection with C. neoformans and may facilitate the in vivo study of fungal virulence and efficacy of antifungal therapies.

Light controls growth and development via a conserved pathway in the fungal kingdom

Light inhibits mating and haploid fruiting of the human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, but the mechanisms involved were unknown. Two genes controlling light responses were discovered through candidate gene and insertional mutagenesis approaches. Deletion of candidate genes encoding a predicted opsin or phytochrome had no effect on mating, while strains mutated in the white collar 1 homolog gene BWC1 mated equally well in the light or the dark. The predicted Bwc1 protein shares identity with Neurospora crassa WC-1, but lacks the zinc finger DNA binding domain. BWC1 regulates cell fusion and repression of hyphal development after fusion in response to blue light. In addition, bwc1 mutant strains are hypersensitive to ultraviolet light. To identify other components required for responses to light, a novel self-fertile haploid strain was created and subjected to Agrobacterium-mediated insertional mutagenesis. One UV-sensitive mutant that filaments equally well in the light and the dark was identified and found to have an insertion in the BWC2 gene, whose product is structurally similar to N. crassa WC-2. The C. neoformans Bwc1 and Bwc2 proteins interact in the yeast two-hybrid assay. Deletion of BWC1 or BWC2 reduces the virulence of C. neoformans in a murine model of infection; the Bwc1-Bwc2 system thus represents a novel protein complex that influences both development and virulence in a pathogenic fungus. These results demonstrate that a role for blue/UV light in controlling development is an ancient process that predates the divergence of the fungi into the ascomycete and basidiomycete phyla.

Two genes controlling light responses - BWC1 and BWC2 - were identified and shown to regulate development and virulence of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans

Cryptococcus neoformans virulence gene discovery through insertional mutagenesis

Insertional mutagenesis was applied to Cryptococcus neoformans to identify genes associated with virulence attributes. Using biolistic transformation, we generated 4,300 nourseothricin (NAT)-resistant strains, of which 590 exhibited stable resistance. We focused on mutants with defects in established virulence factors and identified two with reduced growth at 37 degrees C, four with reduced production of the antioxidant pigment melanin, and two with an increased sensitivity to nitric oxide (NO). The NAT insertion and mutant phenotypes were genetically linked in five of eight mutants, and the DNA flanking the insertions was characterized. For the strains with altered growth at 37 degrees C and altered melanin production, mutations were in previously uncharacterized genes, while the two NO-sensitive strains bore insertions in the flavohemoglobin gene FHB1, whose product counters NO stress. Because of the frequent instability of nourseothricin resistance associated with biolistic transformation, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation was tested. This transkingdom DNA delivery approach produced 100% stable nourseothricin-resistant transformants, and three melanin-defective strains were identified from 576 transformants, of which 2 were linked to NAT in segregation analysis. One of these mutants contained a T-DNA insertion in the promoter of the LAC1 (laccase) gene, which encodes a key enzyme required for melanin production, while the second contained an insertion in the promoter of the CLC1 gene, encoding a voltage-gated chloride channel. Clc1 and its homologs are required for ion homeostasis, and in their absence Cu+ transport into the secretory pathway is compromised, depriving laccase and other Cu(+)-dependent proteins of their essential cofactor. The NAT resistance cassette was optimized for cryptococcal codon usage and GC content and was then used to disrupt a mitogen-activated protein kinase gene, a predicted gene, and two putative chloride channel genes to analyze their contributions to fungal physiology. Our findings demonstrate that both insertional mutagenesis methods can be applied to gene identification, but Agrobacterium-mediated transformation is more efficient and generates exclusively stable insertion mutations.

Cryptococcus neoformans Kin1 protein kinase homologue, identified through a Caenorhabditis elegans screen, promotes virulence in mammals

Cryptococcal infections are a global cause of significant morbidity and mortality. Recent studies support the hypothesis that virulence of Cryptococcus neoformans may have evolved via survival selection in environmental hosts, such as amoebae and free-living nematodes. We used killing of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans by C. neoformans as an assay to screen a library of random C. neoformans insertion mutants. Of 350 mutants tested, seven were identified with attenuated virulence that persisted after crossing the mutation back into a wild-type strain. Genetic analysis of one strain revealed an insertion in a gene homologous to Saccharomyces cerevisiae KIN1, which encodes a serine/threonine protein kinase. C. neoformans kin1 mutants exhibited significant defects in virulence in murine inhalation and haematogenous infection models and displayed increased binding to alveolar and peritoneal macrophages. The kin1 mutant phenotypes were complemented by the wild-type KIN1 gene. These findings show that the C. neoformans Kin1 kinase homologue is required for full virulence in disparate hosts and that C. elegans can be used as a substitute host to identify novel factors involved in fungal pathogenesis in mammals.

Analysis of loss of pathogenicity mutants reveals that repeat-induced point mutations can occur in the Dothideomycete Leptosphaeria maculans

Restriction enzyme mediated insertional mutagenesis using a plasmid, pUCATPH, that confers hygromycin resistance, generated loss-of-pathogenicity mutants of Leptosphaeria maculans, the fungus that causes blackleg disease of Brassica napus. Of 516 L. maculans transformants analysed, 12 were pathogenicity mutants. When eight of these mutants were crossed to an isolate that attacks B. napus, cosegregation of pUCATPH sequences and loss of pathogenicity was not observed, suggesting that these mutations were not linked to plasmid sequences. In seven of eight crosses analysed, progeny with the hygromycin resistance gene were hygromycin-sensitive. Sequence analysis of an amplified fragment of pUCATPH in six clones derived from one 'silenced' progeny showed mutation of GC to AT on one DNA strand, reminiscent of repeat-induced point mutation (RIP) in Neurospora crassa. One loss-of-pathogenicity mutant had pUCATPH inserted in the promoter of a gene with an open reading frame of 529 amino acids that had no database match. Reintroduction of a wild-type copy of the gene to this mutant restored the ability to form lesions on cotyledons of B. napus.

Characterization of a gene (sp1) encoding a secreted protein from Leptosphaeria maculans, the blackleg pathogen of Brassica napus

SUMMARY A gene (sp1) encoding a 12.3 kDa protein with a predicted secretion signal has been characterized from Leptosphaeria maculans, the dothideomycete that causes blackleg disease of canola (Brassica napus). This protein (SP1) contains four cysteine residues and shows a high sequence similarity to proteins from other ascomycetes. L. maculans sp1 has been placed on genetic and physical maps. This gene is expressed during the infection of B. napus cotyledons 10 days post-inoculation, coinciding with detection of the constitutively expressed fungal gene, beta-tubulin. L. maculans sp1, along with opsin and glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase, is light regulated. A recombinant SP1 protein expressed in Escherichia coli and a crude protein fraction secreted by L. maculans induced an autofluorescence response on B. napus leaves. The sp1 gene was mutated by targeted gene disruption whereby a hygromycin resistance gene was inserted. Such mutants caused similar-sized lesions on B. napus cotyledons as those caused by the wild-type isolate, indicating that sp1 is not crucial for pathogenicity of L. maculans on B. napus. This is the first report of disruption of this gene in any fungus.

Isocitrate lyase is essential for pathogenicity of the fungus Leptosphaeria maculans to canola (Brassica napus)

A pathogenicity gene has been identified in Leptosphaeria maculans, the ascomycetous fungus that causes blackleg disease of canola (Brassica napus). This gene encodes isocitrate lyase, a component of the glyoxylate cycle, and is essential for the successful colonization of B. napus. It was identified by a reverse genetics approach whereby a plasmid conferring hygromycin resistance was inserted randomly into the L. maculans genome. Twelve of 516 transformants tested had reduced pathogenicity on cotyledons of B. juncea and B. napus, and 1 of these 12 had a deletion of the isocitrate lyase gene, as well as an insertion of the hygromycin resistance gene. This mutant was unable to grow on fatty acids, including monolaurate, and the isocitrate lyase transcript was not detected. When the wild-type gene was reintroduced into the mutant, growth on monolaurate was restored and pathogenicity was partially restored. L. maculans isocitrate lyase is produced during infection of B. napus cotyledons, while the plant homologue is not. When 2.5% glucose was added to the inoculum of the isocitrate lyase mutant, lesions of sizes similar to those caused by wild-type isolate M1 developed on B. napus cotyledons. These findings suggest that the glyoxylate pathway is essential for disease development by this plant-pathogenic fungus, as has been shown recently for a fungal and bacterial pathogen of animals and a bacterial pathogen of plants. Involvement of the glyoxylate pathway in pathogenesis in animals and plants presents potential drug targets for control of diseases.

Phylogenetic relationships in the Gesnerioideae (Gesneriaceae) based on nrDNA ITS and cpDNA trnL-F and trnE-T spacer region sequences

The Gesnerioideae includes most of the New World members of the Gesneriaceae family and is currently considered to include five tribes: Beslerieae, Episcieae, Gesnerieae, Gloxinieae, and Napeantheae. This study presents maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood phylogenetic analyses of nuclear ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS), and the chloroplast DNA trnL intron, trnL-trnF intergenic spacer region, and trnE-trnT intergenic spacer region sequences. The ITS and cpDNA data sets strongly support the monophyly of a Beslerieae/Napeantheae clade; an Episcieae clade; a Gesnerieae clade; a Gloxinieae clade minus Sinningia, Sinningia relatives, and Gloxinia sarmentiana; and a Sinningia/Paliavana/Vanhouttea clade. This is the first study to provide strong statistical support for these tribes/clades. These analyses suggest that Sinningia and relatives should be considered as a separate tribe. Additionally, generic relationships are explored, including the apparent polyphyly of Gloxinia. Chromosome number changes are minimized on the proposed phylogeny, with the exception of the n = 11 taxa of the Gloxinieae. Scaly rhizomes appear to have been derived once in the Gloxinieae sensu stricto. The number of derivations of the inferior ovary is unclear: either there was one derivation with a reversal to a superior ovary in the Episcieae, or there were multiple independent derivations of the inferior ovary.

Pathogenicity genes of phytopathogenic fungi

Summary Recently many fungal genes have been identified that, when disrupted, result in strains with a reduction or total loss of disease symptoms. Such pathogenicity genes are the subject of this review. The large number of pathogenicity genes identified is due to the application of tagged mutagenesis techniques (random or targeted). Genes have been identified with roles in the formation of infection structures, cell wall degradation, overcoming or avoiding plant defences, responding to the host environment, production of toxins, and in signal cascades. Additionally, genes with no database matches and with 'novel' functions have also been found. Improved technologies for mutation analysis and for sequencing and analysing fungal genomes hold promise for identifying many more pathogenicity genes.

Leptosphaeria maculans, the causal agent of blackleg disease of Brassicas

The loculoascomycete Leptosphaeria maculans (anamorph: Phoma lingam) causes blackleg of Brassicas, including Brassica napus (canola or rapeseed). This fungus probably comprises several morphologically similar species; taxonomic relationships between them are being clarified and nomenclature is being revised. The pathotype ("A" group) responsible for major economic losses to canola has been studied in more detail than other members of this species complex and is the focus of this review. L. maculans is haploid, outcrossing, can be transformed, and has a genome size of about 34 Mb. Preliminary genetic and physical maps have been developed and three genes involved in host specificity have been mapped. As yet, few genes have been characterized. Chemical analysis of fungal secondary metabolites has aided understanding of taxonomic relationships and of the host-fungal interaction by the unraveling of pathways for detoxification of antimicrobial phytoalexins. Several phytotoxins (host and nonhost specific) have been identified and a complex pattern of regulation of their synthesis by fungal and host metabolites has been discovered.

Characterization of an opsin gene from the ascomycete Leptosphaeria maculans

An opsin gene (ops) has been characterized from Leptosphaeria maculans, the ascomycete that causes black-leg disease of Brassica species. This is the second opsin identified outside the archaeal and animal kingdoms. The gene encodes a predicted protein with high similarity (70.3%) and identity (53.3%) to the nop-1 opsin of another ascomycete Neurospora crassa. The L. maculans opsin also has identical amino acid residues in 20 of the 22 residues in the retinal-binding pocket of archaeal opsins. Opsin, on the fourth largest chromosome of L. maculans and 22 cM from the mating type locus, is the first cloned gene to be mapped in L. maculans. Opsin is transcribed at high levels in mycelia grown in the presence and absence of light; this pattern is in contrast with that of the N. crassa opsin, which is transcribed only in the light.