Powdery mildew genomes reloaded

Shotgun proteomics provides an insight into pathogenesis-related proteins using anamorphic stage of the biotroph, Erysiphe pisi pathogen of garden pea

E. pisi is an ascomycete member causing powdery mildew disease of garden pea. It is a biotrophic pathogen, requiring a living host for its survival. Our understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying its pathogenesis is limited. The identification of proteins expressed in the pathogen is required to gain an insight into the functional mechanisms of an obligate biotrophic fungal pathogen. In this study, the proteome of the anamorphic stage of E. pisi pathogen has been elucidated through the nano LC-MS/MS approach. A total of 328 distinct proteins were detected from Erysiphe isolates infecting the susceptible pea cultivar, Arkel. The proteome is available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD010238. The functional classification of protein accessions based on Gene Ontology revealed proteins related to signal transduction, secondary metabolite formation and stress which might be involved in virulence and pathogenesis. The functional validation carried through differential expression of genes encoding G-protein beta subunit, a Cyclophilin (Peptidyl prolyl cis-transisomerase) and ABC transporter in a time course study confirmed their putative role in pathogenesis between resistant and susceptible genotypes, JI2480 and Arkel. The garden pea-powdery mildew pathosystem is largely unexplored, therefore, the identified proteome provides a first-hand information and will form a basis to analyze mechanisms involving pathogen survival, pathogenesis and virulence.

Reconstructing the Evolutionary History of Powdery Mildew Lineages (Blumeria graminis) at Different Evolutionary Time Scales with NGS Data

Blumeria graminis (Ascomycota) includes fungal pathogens that infect numerous grasses and cereals. Despite its economic impact on agriculture and its scientific importance in plant–pathogen interaction studies, the evolution of different lineages with different host ranges is poorly understood. Moreover, the taxonomy of grass powdery mildew is rather exceptional: there is only one described species (B. graminis) subdivided in different formae speciales (ff.spp.), which are defined by their host range. In this study we applied phylogenomic and population genomic methods to whole genome sequence data of 31 isolates of B. graminis belonging to different ff.spp. and reconstructed the evolutionary relationships between different lineages. The results of the phylogenomic analysis support a pattern of co-evolution between some of the ff.spp. and their host plant. In addition, we identified exceptions to this pattern, namely host jump events and the recent radiation of a clade less than 280,000 years ago. Furthermore, we found a high level of gene tree incongruence localized in the youngest clade. To distinguish between incomplete lineage sorting and lateral gene flow, we applied a coalescent-based method of demographic inference and found evidence of horizontal gene flow between recently diverged lineages. Overall we found that different processes shaped the diversification of B. graminis, co-evolution with the host species, host jump and fast radiation. Our study is an example of how genomic data can resolve complex evolutionary histories of cryptic lineages at different time scales, dealing with incomplete lineage sorting and lateral gene flow.

Mildew-Omics: How Global Analyses Aid the Understanding of Life and Evolution of Powdery Mildews

The common powdery mildew plant diseases are caused by ascomycete fungi of the order Erysiphales. Their characteristic life style as obligate biotrophs renders functional analyses in these species challenging, mainly because of experimental constraints to genetic manipulation. Global large-scale ("-omics") approaches are thus particularly valuable and insightful for the characterisation of the life and evolution of powdery mildews. Here we review the knowledge obtained so far from genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic studies in these fungi. We consider current limitations and challenges regarding these surveys and provide an outlook on desired future investigations on the basis of the various -omics technologies.