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Ndinga-Muniania C, Wornson N, Fulcher MR, Borer ET, Seabloom EW, Kinkel L, May G. Cryptic functional diversity within a grass mycobiome. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0287990. [PMID: 37471328 PMCID: PMC10358963 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotic hosts harbor tremendously diverse microbiomes that affect host fitness and response to environmental challenges. Fungal endophytes are prominent members of plant microbiomes, but we lack information on the diversity in functional traits affecting their interactions with their host and environment. We used two culturing approaches to isolate fungal endophytes associated with the widespread, dominant prairie grass Andropogon gerardii and characterized their taxonomic diversity using rDNA barcode sequencing. A randomly chosen subset of fungi representing the diversity of each leaf was then evaluated for their use of different carbon compound resources and growth on those resources. Applying community phylogenetic analyses, we discovered that these fungal endophyte communities are comprised of phylogenetically distinct assemblages of slow- and fast-growing fungi that differ in their use and growth on differing carbon substrates. Our results demonstrate previously undescribed and cryptic functional diversity in carbon resource use and growth in fungal endophyte communities of A. gerardii.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cedric Ndinga-Muniania
- Plant and Microbial Biology Graduate Program, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Nicholas Wornson
- School of Statistics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States of America
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Michael R Fulcher
- Foreign Disease-Weed Science Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture, Frederick, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Elizabeth T Borer
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Eric W Seabloom
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Linda Kinkel
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Georgiana May
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
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Lacerda ÍCDS, Polonio JC, Golias HC. Endophytic Fungi as a Source of Antiviral Compounds - A Review. Chem Biodivers 2022; 19:e202100971. [PMID: 35426966 DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.202100971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Endophytic fungi are a rich source of secondary metabolites. The interactions between endophytes and their hosts lead to the production of several bioactive substances grouped into different classes, each having a wide variety of effects against various pathogens. The metabolites obtained from these organisms include steroids, alkaloids, phenols, isocoumarins, xanthones, quinones, and terpenoids, among others. These substances are known to have antibiotic, antiparasitic, antifungal, and antiviral effects. This review summarizes secondary metabolites with antiviral effects produced by endophytic fungi and highlights the importance of research in developing novel antiviral substances. We demonstrate that endophytic fungi are a rich source of secondary metabolites that combat pathologies caused by viruses. Optimizing practical and biotechnological screening tools for the research of these metabolites will provide promising drugs to combat these infections.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Júlio Cesar Polonio
- Department of Cell Biology, Genetics and Biotechnology, State University of Maringá (UEM), Brazil
| | - Halison Correia Golias
- Department of Humanities, Microbiology Laboratory, Federal Technological University of Paraná (UTFPR), Brazil
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Abstract
Alternaria alternata is a common species of fungus frequently isolated from plants as both an endophyte and a pathogen. Although the current definition of A. alternata rests on a foundation of morphological, genetic and genomic analyses, doubts persist regarding the scope of A. alternata within the genus due to the varied symbiotic interactions and wide host range observed in these fungi. These doubts may be due in large part to the history of unstable taxonomy in Alternaria, based on limited morphological characters for species delimitation and host specificity associated with toxins encoded by genes carried on conditionally dispensable chromosomes. This review explores the history of Alternaria taxonomy, focusing in particular on the use of nutritional mode and host associations in species delimitation, with the goal of evaluating A. alternata as it currently stands based on taxonomic best practice. Given the recombination detected among isolates of A. alternata, different symbiotic associations in this species should not be considered phylogenetically informative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mara DeMers
- Plant and Microbial Biology Department, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, USA
- *Correspondence: Mara DeMers,
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