1
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Fleming J, Eriksen PM, Struck TH. Scoutknife: A naïve, whole genome informed phylogenetic robusticity metric. F1000Res 2024; 12:945. [PMID: 38799242 PMCID: PMC11128044 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.139356.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: The phylogenetic bootstrap, first proposed by Felsenstein in 1985, is a critically important statistical method in assessing the robusticity of phylogenetic datasets. Core to its concept was the use of pseudo sampling - assessing the data by generating new replicates derived from the initial dataset that was used to generate the phylogeny. In this way, phylogenetic support metrics could overcome the lack of perfect, infinite data. With infinite data, however, it is possible to sample smaller replicates directly from the data to obtain both the phylogeny and its statistical robusticity in the same analysis. Due to the growth of whole genome sequencing, the depth and breadth of our datasets have greatly expanded and are set to only expand further. With genome-scale datasets comprising thousands of genes, we can now obtain a proxy for infinite data. Accordingly, we can potentially abandon the notion of pseudo sampling and instead randomly sample small subsets of genes from the thousands of genes in our analyses. Methods: We introduce Scoutknife, a jackknife-style subsampling implementation that generates 100 datasets by randomly sampling a small number of genes from an initial large-gene dataset to jointly establish both a phylogenetic hypothesis and assess its robusticity. We assess its effectiveness by using 18 previously published datasets and 100 simulation studies. Results: We show that Scoutknife is conservative and informative as to conflicts and incongruence across the whole genome, without the need for subsampling based on traditional model selection criteria. Conclusions: Scoutknife reliably achieves comparable results to selecting the best genes on both real and simulation datasets, while being resistant to the potential biases caused by selecting for model fit. As the amount of genome data grows, it becomes an even more exciting option to assess the robusticity of phylogenetic hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Fleming
- Natural History Museum, Universitetet i Oslo, Oslo, Oslo, 0562, Norway
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2
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Luciano-Rosario D, Jurick WM, Gottschalk C. The Near-Gapless Penicillium fuscoglaucum Genome Enables the Discovery of Lifestyle Features as an Emerging Post-Harvest Phytopathogen. J Fungi (Basel) 2024; 10:430. [PMID: 38921416 PMCID: PMC11204653 DOI: 10.3390/jof10060430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2024] [Revised: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Penicillium spp. occupy many diverse biological niches that include plant pathogens, opportunistic human pathogens, saprophytes, indoor air contaminants, and those selected specifically for industrial applications to produce secondary metabolites and lifesaving antibiotics. Recent phylogenetic studies have established Penicillium fuscoglaucum as a synonym for Penicillium commune, which is an indoor air contaminant and toxin producer and can infect apple fruit during storage. During routine culturing on selective media in the lab, we obtained an isolate of P. fuscoglaucum Pf_T2 and sequenced its genome. The Pf_T2 genome is far superior to available genomic resources for the species. Our assembly exhibits a length of 35.1 Mb, a BUSCO score of 97.9% complete, and consists of five scaffolds/contigs representing the four expected chromosomes. It was determined that the Pf_T2 genome was colinear with a type specimen P. fuscoglaucum and contained a lineage-specific, intact cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) gene cluster. For comparison, a highly virulent postharvest apple pathogen, P. expansum strain TDL 12.1, was included and showed a similar growth pattern in culture to our Pf_T2 isolate but was far more aggressive in apple fruit than P. fuscoglaucum. The genome of Pf_T2 serves as a major improvement over existing resources, has superior annotation, and can inform forthcoming omics-based work and functional genetic studies to probe secondary metabolite production and disparities in aggressiveness during apple fruit decay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dianiris Luciano-Rosario
- Food Quality Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA;
- ORISE Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA
| | - Wayne M. Jurick
- Food Quality Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA;
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3
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Lizcano Salas AF, Duitama J, Restrepo S, Celis Ramírez AM. Phylogenomic approaches reveal a robust time-scale phylogeny of the Terminal Fusarium Clade. IMA Fungus 2024; 15:13. [PMID: 38849861 PMCID: PMC11161934 DOI: 10.1186/s43008-024-00147-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
The Terminal Fusarium Clade (TFC) is a group in the Nectriaceae family with agricultural and clinical relevance. In recent years, various phylogenies have been presented in the literature, showing disagreement in the topologies, but only a few studies have conducted analyses on the divergence time scale of the group. Therefore, the evolutionary history of this group is still being determined. This study aimed to understand the evolutionary history of the TFC from a phylogenomic perspective. To achieve this objective, we performed a phylogenomic analysis using the available genomes in GenBank and ran eight different pipelines. We presented a new robust topology of the TFC that differs at some nodes from previous studies. These new relationships allowed us to formulate new hypotheses about the evolutionary history of the TFC. We also inferred new divergence time estimates, which differ from those of previous studies due to topology discordances and taxon sampling. The results suggested an important diversification process in the Neogene period, likely associated with the diversification and predominance of terrestrial ecosystems by angiosperms. In conclusion, we presented a robust time-scale phylogeny that allowed us to formulate new hypotheses regarding the evolutionary history of the TFC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés Felipe Lizcano Salas
- Grupo de Investigación Celular y Molecular de Microorganismos Patógenos (CeMop), Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Jorge Duitama
- Systems and Computing Engineering Department, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Silvia Restrepo
- Chemical Engineering Department, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Adriana Marcela Celis Ramírez
- Grupo de Investigación Celular y Molecular de Microorganismos Patógenos (CeMop), Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia.
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4
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Balamurugan C, Steenwyk JL, Goldman GH, Rokas A. The evolution of the gliotoxin biosynthetic gene cluster in Penicillium fungi. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2024; 14:jkae063. [PMID: 38507596 PMCID: PMC11075534 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkae063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Fungi biosynthesize diverse secondary metabolites, small organic bioactive molecules with key roles in fungal ecology. Fungal secondary metabolites are often encoded by physically clustered genes known as biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). Fungi in the genus Penicillium produce a cadre of secondary metabolites, some of which are useful (e.g. the antibiotic penicillin and the cholesterol-lowering drug mevastatin) and others harmful (e.g. the mycotoxin patulin and the immunosuppressant gliotoxin) to human affairs. Fungal genomes often also encode resistance genes that confer protection against toxic secondary metabolites. Some Penicillium species, such as Penicillium decumbens, are known to produce gliotoxin, a secondary metabolite with known immunosuppressant activity. To investigate the evolutionary conservation of homologs of the gliotoxin BGC and of genes involved in gliotoxin resistance in Penicillium, we analyzed 35 Penicillium genomes from 23 species. Homologous, lesser fragmented gliotoxin BGCs were found in 12 genomes, mostly fragmented remnants of the gliotoxin BGC were found in 21 genomes, whereas the remaining 2 Penicillium genomes lacked the gliotoxin BGC altogether. In contrast, broad conservation of homologs of resistance genes that reside outside the BGC across Penicillium genomes was observed. Evolutionary rate analysis revealed that BGCs with higher numbers of genes evolve slower than BGCs with few genes, suggestive of constraint and potential functional significance or more recent decay. Gene tree-species tree reconciliation analyses suggested that the history of homologs in the gliotoxin BGC across the genus Penicillium likely involved multiple duplications, losses, and horizontal gene transfers. Our analyses suggest that genes encoded in BGCs can have complex evolutionary histories and be retained in genomes long after the loss of secondary metabolite biosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charu Balamurugan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Jacob L Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Howards Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Gustavo H Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo CEP 14040-903, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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5
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Steenwyk JL, King N. The promise and pitfalls of synteny in phylogenomics. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002632. [PMID: 38768403 PMCID: PMC11105162 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Reconstructing the tree of life remains a central goal in biology. Early methods, which relied on small numbers of morphological or genetic characters, often yielded conflicting evolutionary histories, undermining confidence in the results. Investigations based on phylogenomics, which use hundreds to thousands of loci for phylogenetic inquiry, have provided a clearer picture of life's history, but certain branches remain problematic. To resolve difficult nodes on the tree of life, 2 recent studies tested the utility of synteny, the conserved collinearity of orthologous genetic loci in 2 or more organisms, for phylogenetics. Synteny exhibits compelling phylogenomic potential while also raising new challenges. This Essay identifies and discusses specific opportunities and challenges that bear on the value of synteny data and other rare genomic changes for phylogenomic studies. Synteny-based analyses of highly contiguous genome assemblies mark a new chapter in the phylogenomic era and the quest to reconstruct the tree of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
| | - Nicole King
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
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6
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Steenwyk JL, Balamurugan C, Raja HA, Gonçalves C, Li N, Martin F, Berman J, Oberlies NH, Gibbons JG, Goldman GH, Geiser DM, Houbraken J, Hibbett DS, Rokas A. Phylogenomics reveals extensive misidentification of fungal strains from the genus Aspergillus. Microbiol Spectr 2024; 12:e0398023. [PMID: 38445873 PMCID: PMC10986620 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.03980-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Modern taxonomic classification is often based on phylogenetic analyses of a few molecular markers, although single-gene studies are still common. Here, we leverage genome-scale molecular phylogenetics (phylogenomics) of species and populations to reconstruct evolutionary relationships in a dense data set of 710 fungal genomes from the biomedically and technologically important genus Aspergillus. To do so, we generated a novel set of 1,362 high-quality molecular markers specific for Aspergillus and provided profile Hidden Markov Models for each, facilitating their use by others. Examining the resulting phylogeny helped resolve ongoing taxonomic controversies, identified new ones, and revealed extensive strain misidentification (7.59% of strains were previously misidentified), underscoring the importance of population-level sampling in species classification. These findings were corroborated using the current standard, taxonomically informative loci. These findings suggest that phylogenomics of species and populations can facilitate accurate taxonomic classifications and reconstructions of the Tree of Life.IMPORTANCEIdentification of fungal species relies on the use of molecular markers. Advances in genomic technologies have made it possible to sequence the genome of any fungal strain, making it possible to use genomic data for the accurate assignment of strains to fungal species (and for the discovery of new ones). We examined the usefulness and current limitations of genomic data using a large data set of 710 publicly available genomes from multiple strains and species of the biomedically, agriculturally, and industrially important genus Aspergillus. Our evolutionary genomic analyses revealed that nearly 8% of publicly available Aspergillus genomes are misidentified. Our work highlights the usefulness of genomic data for fungal systematic biology and suggests that systematic genome sequencing of multiple strains, including reference strains (e.g., type strains), of fungal species will be required to reduce misidentification errors in public databases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Howards Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Charu Balamurugan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Huzefa A. Raja
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
| | - Carla Gonçalves
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Ningxiao Li
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, California, USA
- USDA-ARS, Salinas, California, USA
| | | | - Judith Berman
- Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Israel
| | - Nicholas H. Oberlies
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
| | - John G. Gibbons
- Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
- Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Gustavo H. Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - David M. Geiser
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Jos Houbraken
- Food and Indoor Mycology, Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - David S. Hibbett
- Biology Department, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg, Heidelberg, Germany
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7
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Liang R, Yang Q, Li Y, Yin G, Zhao G. Morphological and phylogenetic analyses reveal two new Penicillium species isolated from the ancient Great Wall loess in Beijing, China. Front Microbiol 2024; 15:1329299. [PMID: 38559343 PMCID: PMC10978590 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1329299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Penicillium species exhibit a broad distribution in nature and play a crucial role in human and ecological environments. Methods Two Penicillium species isolated from the ancient Great Wall loess in the Mentougou District of Beijing, China, were identified and described as new species, namely, Penicillium acidogenicum and P. floccosum, based on morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analyses of multiple genes including ITS, BenA, CaM, and RPB2 genes. Results Phylogenetic analyses showed that both novel species formed a distinctive lineage and that they were most closely related to P. chrzaszczii and P. osmophilum, respectively. Discussion Penicillium acidogenicum is characterized by biverticillate conidiophores that produce globose conidia and is distinguished from similar species by its capacity to grow on CYA at 30°C. Penicillium floccosum is typically recognized by its restricted growth and floccose colony texture. The description of these two new species provided additional knowledge and new insights into the ecology and distribution of Penicillium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruina Liang
- College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Tree Breeding and Ecological Restoration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - Qiqi Yang
- College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - Ying Li
- College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - Guohua Yin
- College of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Qilu Institute of Technology, Jinan, China
| | - Guozhu Zhao
- College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Tree Breeding and Ecological Restoration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
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Ye R, Biango-Daniels M, Steenwyk JL, Rokas A, Louw NL, Nardella R, Wolfe BE. Genomic, transcriptomic, and ecological diversity of Penicillium species in cheese rind microbiomes. Fungal Genet Biol 2024; 171:103862. [PMID: 38218228 DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2023.103862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2024]
Abstract
Although Penicillium molds can have significant impacts on agricultural, industrial, and biomedical systems, the ecological roles of Penicillium species in many microbiomes are not well characterized. Here we utilized a collection of 35 Penicillium strains isolated from cheese rinds to broadly investigate the genomic potential for secondary metabolism in cheese-associated Penicillium species, the impact of Penicillium on bacterial community assembly, and mechanisms of Penicillium-bacteria interactions. Using antiSMASH, we identified 1558 biosynthetic gene clusters, 406 of which were mapped to known pathways, including several mycotoxins and antimicrobial compounds. By measuring bacterial abundance and fungal mRNA expression when culturing representative Penicillium strains with a cheese rind bacterial community, we observed divergent impacts of different Penicillium strains, from strong inhibitors of bacterial growth to those with no impact on bacterial growth or community composition. Through differential mRNA expression analyses, Penicillium strains demonstrated limited differential gene expression in response to the bacterial community. We identified a few shared responses between the eight tested Penicillium strains, primarily upregulation of nutrient metabolic pathways, but we did not identify a conserved fungal response to growth in a multispecies community. These results in tandem suggest high variation among cheese-associated Penicillium species in their ability to shape bacterial community development and highlight important ecological diversity within this iconic genus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruby Ye
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
| | | | - Jacob L Steenwyk
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences and Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Nicolas L Louw
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
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9
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Zhang Z, Li B, Chai Z, Yang Z, Zhang F, Kang F, Ren H, Jin Y, Yue J. Evolution of the ability to evade host innate immune defense by Talaromyces marneffei. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 253:127597. [PMID: 37884245 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Talaromyces (Penicillium) marneffei is an intracellular pathogenic fungus. Some strains of this fungus have been misidentified due to the similarity between Talaromyces and Penicillium. T. marneffei has mainly been found to afflict immunocompromised individuals, causing respiratory, skin, and systemic mycosis. Mp1p is a key virulence factor that can help T. marneffei evade clearance by the normally functioning immune system. Understanding how novel functions arise is an intriguing question in many fields of biology. Mp1p has two homologous domains (Mp1p-LBD1 and Mp1p-LBD2). Sequence similarity searches with Mp1p-LBD sequences revealed Mp1p homologs in many other pathogenic fungi. Integrated information on the taxonomic distribution, phylogenetic relationships, and sequence similarity of Mp1p domains revealed that the ancestor of Mp1p-LBDs was acquired through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Additional evidence revealed that Mp1p homologs have undergone extensive gene duplications in T. marneffei. Mp1p might be a result of gene fusion following gene duplication. Furthermore, we propose a new method for identifying Talaromyces and identify 4 strains with misclassification errors. Our results characterize the evolutionary mechanism of T. marneffei evasion of host innate immune defense and clearly demonstrate the role of gene duplication and HGT in the evolution of host immune escape by T. marneffei.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zehan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Beiping Li
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Zili Chai
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Zilong Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Fengwei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Fuqiang Kang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China
| | - Hongguang Ren
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China.
| | - Yuan Jin
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China.
| | - Junjie Yue
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing, 100071, China.
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10
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Lee JW, Lee W, Perera RH, Lim YW. Long-Term Investigation of Marine-Derived Aspergillus Diversity in the Republic of Korea. MYCOBIOLOGY 2023; 51:436-444. [PMID: 38179120 PMCID: PMC10763834 DOI: 10.1080/12298093.2023.2279342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
Aspergillus species play a crucial role in terrestrial environments as degraders and are well known for producing various secondary metabolites. Recently, Aspergillus species have been discovered in marine environments, exhibiting adaptability to high salinity and producing diverse secondary metabolites with valuable properties. However, limited research has focused on their marine diversity, leading to inaccurate species identification. The current study addresses this gap by investigating diverse marine habitats in the Republic of Korea, including sediment, seawater, seaweed, and marine animals. From three coasts of the Korean Peninsula, 472 Aspergillus strains were isolated from the various marine habitats. A total of 41 species were accurately identified using multigenetic markers: internal transcribed spacer, calmodulin, and β-tubulin. The findings underscore the importance of accurate identification and provide a basis for elucidating the functional role of marine-derived Aspergillus species in marine ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Won Lee
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute of Microbiology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Wonjun Lee
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute of Microbiology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Rekhani Hansika Perera
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute of Microbiology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Young Woon Lim
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute of Microbiology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
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11
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Elalouf A, Elalouf H, Rosenfeld A. Modulatory immune responses in fungal infection associated with organ transplant - advancements, management, and challenges. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1292625. [PMID: 38143753 PMCID: PMC10748506 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1292625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Organ transplantation stands as a pivotal achievement in modern medicine, offering hope to individuals with end-stage organ diseases. Advancements in immunology led to improved organ transplant survival through the development of immunosuppressants, but this heightened susceptibility to fungal infections with nonspecific symptoms in recipients. This review aims to establish an intricate balance between immune responses and fungal infections in organ transplant recipients. It explores the fundamental immune mechanisms, recent advances in immune response dynamics, and strategies for immune modulation, encompassing responses to fungal infections, immunomodulatory approaches, diagnostics, treatment challenges, and management. Early diagnosis of fungal infections in transplant patients is emphasized with the understanding that innate immune responses could potentially reduce immunosuppression and promise efficient and safe immuno-modulating treatments. Advances in fungal research and genetic influences on immune-fungal interactions are underscored, as well as the potential of single-cell technologies integrated with machine learning for biomarker discovery. This review provides a snapshot of the complex interplay between immune responses and fungal infections in organ transplantation and underscores key research directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amir Elalouf
- Department of Management, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Hadas Elalouf
- Information Science Department, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Ariel Rosenfeld
- Information Science Department, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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12
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Steenwyk JL, Li Y, Zhou X, Shen XX, Rokas A. Incongruence in the phylogenomics era. Nat Rev Genet 2023; 24:834-850. [PMID: 37369847 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-023-00620-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Genome-scale data and the development of novel statistical phylogenetic approaches have greatly aided the reconstruction of a broad sketch of the tree of life and resolved many of its branches. However, incongruence - the inference of conflicting evolutionary histories - remains pervasive in phylogenomic data, hampering our ability to reconstruct and interpret the tree of life. Biological factors, such as incomplete lineage sorting, horizontal gene transfer, hybridization, introgression, recombination and convergent molecular evolution, can lead to gene phylogenies that differ from the species tree. In addition, analytical factors, including stochastic, systematic and treatment errors, can drive incongruence. Here, we review these factors, discuss methodological advances to identify and handle incongruence, and highlight avenues for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L Steenwyk
- Howards Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Yuanning Li
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Xiaofan Zhou
- Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Microbial Signals and Disease Control, Integrative Microbiology Research Centre, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xing-Xing Shen
- Key Laboratory of Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany.
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13
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Zhao S, Zhang T, Hasunuma T, Kondo A, Zhao XQ, Feng JX. Every road leads to Rome: diverse biosynthetic regulation of plant cell wall-degrading enzymes in filamentous fungi Penicillium oxalicum and Trichoderma reesei. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2023:1-21. [PMID: 38035670 DOI: 10.1080/07388551.2023.2280810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
Cellulases and xylanases are plant cell wall-degrading enzymes (CWDEs) that are critical to sustainable bioproduction based on renewable lignocellulosic biomass to reduce carbon dioxide emission. Currently, these enzymes are mainly produced from filamentous fungi, especially Trichoderma reesei and Penicillium oxalicum. However, an in-depth comparison of these two producers has not been performed. Although both P. oxalicum and T. reesei harbor CWDE systems, they exhibit distinct features regulating the production of these enzymes, mainly through different transcriptional regulatory networks. This review presents the strikingly different modes of genome-wide regulation of cellulase and xylanase biosynthesis in P. oxalicum and T. reesei, including sugar transporters, signal transduction cascades, transcription factors, chromatin remodeling, and three-dimensional organization of chromosomes. In addition, different molecular breeding approaches employed, based on the understanding of the regulatory networks, are summarized. This review highlights the existence of very different regulatory modes leading to the efficient regulation of CWDE production in filamentous fungi, akin to the adage that "every road leads to Rome." An understanding of this divergence may help further improvements in fungal enzyme production through the metabolic engineering and synthetic biology of certain fungal species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Zhao
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-bioresources, Guangxi Research Center for Microbial and Enzyme Engineering Technology, College of Life Science and Technology, Guangxi University, Nanning, China
| | - Ting Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-bioresources, Guangxi Research Center for Microbial and Enzyme Engineering Technology, College of Life Science and Technology, Guangxi University, Nanning, China
| | - Tomohisa Hasunuma
- Graduate School of Science, Technology and Innovation, Engineering Biology Research Center, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
| | - Akihiko Kondo
- Graduate School of Science, Technology and Innovation, Engineering Biology Research Center, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
| | - Xin-Qing Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jia-Xun Feng
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-bioresources, Guangxi Research Center for Microbial and Enzyme Engineering Technology, College of Life Science and Technology, Guangxi University, Nanning, China
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14
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Gwinn KD, Leung MCK, Stephens AB, Punja ZK. Fungal and mycotoxin contaminants in cannabis and hemp flowers: implications for consumer health and directions for further research. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1278189. [PMID: 37928692 PMCID: PMC10620813 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1278189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Medicinal and recreational uses of Cannabis sativa, commonly known as cannabis or hemp, has increased following its legalization in certain regions of the world. Cannabis and hemp plants interact with a community of microbes (i.e., the phytobiome), which can influence various aspects of the host plant. The fungal composition of the C. sativa phytobiome (i.e., mycobiome) currently consists of over 100 species of fungi, which includes phytopathogens, epiphytes, and endophytes, This mycobiome has often been understudied in research aimed at evaluating the safety of cannabis products for humans. Medical research has historically focused instead on substance use and medicinal uses of the plant. Because several components of the mycobiome are reported to produce toxic secondary metabolites (i.e., mycotoxins) that can potentially affect the health of humans and animals and initiate opportunistic infections in immunocompromised patients, there is a need to determine the potential health risks that these contaminants could pose for consumers. This review discusses the mycobiome of cannabis and hemp flowers with a focus on plant-infecting and toxigenic fungi that are most commonly found and are of potential concern (e.g., Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, and Mucor spp.). We review current regulations for molds and mycotoxins worldwide and review assessment methods including culture-based assays, liquid chromatography, immuno-based technologies, and emerging technologies for these contaminants. We also discuss approaches to reduce fungal contaminants on cannabis and hemp and identify future research needs for contaminant detection, data dissemination, and management approaches. These approaches are designed to yield safer products for all consumers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly D. Gwinn
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, United States
| | - Maxwell C. K. Leung
- School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Arizona State University, Glendale, AZ, United States
| | - Ariell B. Stephens
- School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Arizona State University, Glendale, AZ, United States
| | - Zamir K. Punja
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
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15
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Visagie CM, Magistà D, Ferrara M, Balocchi F, Duong TA, Eichmeier A, Gramaje D, Aylward J, Baker SE, Barnes I, Calhoun S, De Angelis M, Frisvad JC, Hakalova E, Hayes RD, Houbraken J, Grigoriev IV, LaButti K, Leal C, Lipzen A, Ng V, Pangilinan J, Pecenka J, Perrone G, Piso A, Savage E, Spetik M, Wingfield MJ, Zhang Y, Wingfield BD. IMA genome-F18 : The re-identification of Penicillium genomes available in NCBI and draft genomes for Penicillium species from dry cured meat, Penicillium biforme, P. brevicompactum, P. solitum, and P. cvjetkovicii, Pewenomyces kutranfy, Pew. lalenivora, Pew. tapulicola, Pew. kalosus, Teratosphaeria carnegiei, and Trichoderma atroviride SC1. IMA Fungus 2023; 14:21. [PMID: 37803441 PMCID: PMC10559472 DOI: 10.1186/s43008-023-00121-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Cobus M. Visagie
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Donato Magistà
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production (ISPA), National Research Council (CNR), Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy
| | - Massimo Ferrara
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production (ISPA), National Research Council (CNR), Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy
| | - Felipe Balocchi
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, FABI, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Tuan A. Duong
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Ales Eichmeier
- Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (ICVV), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Universidad de la Rioja - Gobierno de La Rioja, Ctra. LO-20 Salida 13, Finca La Grajera, 26071 Logroño, Spain
| | - David Gramaje
- Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (ICVV), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Universidad de la Rioja - Gobierno de La Rioja, Ctra. LO-20 Salida 13, Finca La Grajera, 26071 Logroño, Spain
| | - Janneke Aylward
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, Private Bag X1, Stellenbosch, 7602 South Africa
| | - Scott E. Baker
- Functional and Systems Biology Group, Environmental Molecular Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99354 USA
- DOE Joint Bioenergy Institute, Emeryville, CA 94608 USA
| | - Irene Barnes
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Sara Calhoun
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Maria De Angelis
- Department of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Via G. Amendola 165/a, 70126 Bari, Italy
| | - Jens C. Frisvad
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads, Building 221, 2800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Eliska Hakalova
- Mendeleum - Institute of Genetics, Mendel University in Brno, Valticka 334, 691 44 Lednice, Czech Republic
| | - Richard D. Hayes
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Jos Houbraken
- Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Igor V. Grigoriev
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California Berkeley, 110 Koshland Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Kurt LaButti
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Catarina Leal
- Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (ICVV), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Universidad de la Rioja - Gobierno de La Rioja, Ctra. LO-20 Salida 13, Finca La Grajera, 26071 Logroño, Spain
| | - Anna Lipzen
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Vivian Ng
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Jasmyn Pangilinan
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Jakub Pecenka
- Mendeleum - Institute of Genetics, Mendel University in Brno, Valticka 334, 691 44 Lednice, Czech Republic
| | - Giancarlo Perrone
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production (ISPA), National Research Council (CNR), Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy
| | - Anja Piso
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Emily Savage
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Milan Spetik
- Mendeleum - Institute of Genetics, Mendel University in Brno, Valticka 334, 691 44 Lednice, Czech Republic
| | - Michael J. Wingfield
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Yu Zhang
- US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Brenda D. Wingfield
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
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16
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Iwama R, Okahashi N, Suzawa T, Yang C, Matsuda F, Horiuchi H. Comprehensive analysis of the composition of the major phospholipids during the asexual life cycle of the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Biol Lipids 2023; 1868:159379. [PMID: 37659899 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbalip.2023.159379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 09/04/2023]
Abstract
Filamentous fungi undergo significant cellular morphological changes during their life cycle. It has recently been reported that deletions of genes that are involved in phospholipid synthesis led to abnormal hyphal morphology and differentiation in filamentous fungi. Although these results suggest the importance of phospholipid balance in their life cycle, comprehensive analyses of cellular phospholipids are limited. Here, we performed lipidomic analysis of A. nidulans during morphological changes in a liquid medium and of colonies on a solid medium. We observed that the phospholipid composition and transcription of the genes involved in phospholipid synthesis changed dynamically during the life cycle. Specifically, the levels of phosphatidylethanolamine, and highly unsaturated phospholipids increased during the establishment of polarity. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the phospholipid composition in the hyphae at colony margins is similar to that during conidial germination. Furthermore, we demonstrated that common and characteristic phospholipid changes occurred during germination in A. nidulans and A. oryzae, and that species-specific changes also occurred. These results suggest that the exquisite regulation of phospholipid composition is crucial for the growth and differentiation of filamentous fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryo Iwama
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Nobuyuki Okahashi
- Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, Osaka University, 1-5 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan; Osaka University Shimadzu Omics Innovation Research Laboratories, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
| | - Tetsuki Suzawa
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Chuner Yang
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Fumio Matsuda
- Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, Osaka University, 1-5 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan; Osaka University Shimadzu Omics Innovation Research Laboratories, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Horiuchi
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
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17
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Valero C, Pinzan CF, de Castro PA, van Rhijn N, Earle K, Liu H, Horta MAC, Kniemeyer O, Krüger T, Pschibul A, Coemert DN, Heinekamp T, Brakhage AA, Steenwyk JL, Mead ME, Rokas A, Filler SG, da Rosa-Garzon NG, Cabral H, Deljabe E, Bromley MJ, Angeli CB, Palmisano G, Ibrahim AS, Gago S, Dos Reis TF, Goldman GH. A phylogenetic approach to explore the Aspergillus fumigatus conidial surface-associated proteome and its role in pathogenesis. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.22.553365. [PMID: 37662192 PMCID: PMC10473670 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.22.553365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/05/2023]
Abstract
Aspergillus fumigatus , an important pulmonary fungal pathogen causing several diseases collectively called aspergillosis, relies on asexual spores or conidia for initiating host infection. Here, we used a phylogenomic approach to compare proteins in the conidial surface of A. fumigatus , two closely related non-pathogenic species, Aspergillus fischeri and Aspergillus oerlinghausenensis , and the cryptic pathogen Aspergillus lentulus . After identifying 62 proteins uniquely expressed on the A. fumigatus conidial surface, we deleted 42 genes encoding conidial proteins. We found deletion of 33 of these genes altered susceptibility to macrophage killing, penetration and damage to epithelial cells, and cytokine production. Notably, a gene that encodes glycosylasparaginase, which modulates levels of the host pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1β, is important for infection in an immunocompetent murine model of fungal disease. These results suggest that A. fumigatus conidial surface proteins and effectors are important for evasion and modulation of the immune response at the onset of fungal infection.
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18
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Steenwyk JL, Knowles S, Bastos RW, Balamurugan C, Rinker D, Mead ME, Roberts CD, Raja HA, Li Y, Colabardini AC, de Castro PA, dos Reis TF, Canóvas D, Sanchez RL, Lagrou K, Torrado E, Rodrigues F, Oberlies NH, Zhou X, Goldman GH, Rokas A. Evolutionary origin, population diversity, and diagnostics for a cryptic hybrid pathogen. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.03.547508. [PMID: 37461539 PMCID: PMC10350022 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.03.547508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
Cryptic fungal pathogens pose significant identification and disease management challenges due to their morphological resemblance to known pathogenic species while harboring genetic and (often) infectionrelevant trait differences. The cryptic fungal pathogen Aspergillus latus, an allodiploid hybrid originating from Aspergillus spinulosporus and an unknown close relative of Aspergillus quadrilineatus within section Nidulantes, remains poorly understood. The absence of accurate diagnostics for A. latus has led to misidentifications, hindering epidemiological studies and the design of effective treatment plans. We conducted an in-depth investigation of the genomes and phenotypes of 44 globally distributed isolates (41 clinical isolates and three type strains) from Aspergillus section Nidulantes. We found that 21 clinical isolates were A. latus; notably, standard methods of pathogen identification misidentified all A. latus isolates. The remaining isolates were identified as A. spinulosporus (8), A. quadrilineatus (1), or A. nidulans (11). Phylogenomic analyses shed light on the origin of A. latus, indicating one or two hybridization events gave rise to the species during the Miocene, approximately 15.4 to 8.8 million years ago. Characterizing the A. latus pangenome uncovered substantial genetic diversity within gene families and biosynthetic gene clusters. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that both parental genomes are actively expressed in nearly equal proportions and respond to environmental stimuli. Further investigation into infection-relevant chemical and physiological traits, including drug resistance profiles, growth under oxidative stress conditions, and secondary metabolite biosynthesis, highlight distinct phenotypic profiles of the hybrid A. latus compared to its parental and closely related species. Leveraging our comprehensive genomic and phenotypic analyses, we propose five genomic and phenotypic markers as diagnostics for A. latus species identification. These findings provide valuable insights into the evolutionary origin, genomic outcome, and phenotypic implications of hybridization in a cryptic fungal pathogen, thus enhancing our understanding of the underlying processes contributing to fungal pathogenesis. Furthermore, our study underscores the effectiveness of extensive genomic and phenotypic analyses as a promising approach for developing diagnostics applicable to future investigations of cryptic and emerging pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Howards Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, VU Station B #35–1634, Nashville, TN 37235, United States of America
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Sonja Knowles
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
| | - Rafael W. Bastos
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
- Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Bioscience Center, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal-RN, Brazil
| | - Charu Balamurugan
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, VU Station B #35–1634, Nashville, TN 37235, United States of America
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - David Rinker
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, VU Station B #35–1634, Nashville, TN 37235, United States of America
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Matthew E. Mead
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, VU Station B #35–1634, Nashville, TN 37235, United States of America
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Christopher D. Roberts
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
| | - Huzefa A. Raja
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
| | - Yuanning Li
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Ana Cristina Colabardini
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Patrícia Alves de Castro
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Thaila Fernanda dos Reis
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - David Canóvas
- Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Sevilla, Seville, Spain
| | - Rafael Luperini Sanchez
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Katrien Lagrou
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and National Reference Centre for Mycosis, University Hospitals Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Egídio Torrado
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, 4715-495 Braga, Portugal; ICVS/3B’s-PT Government Associate Laboratory, 4715-495 Braga, Portugal
| | - Fernando Rodrigues
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, 4715-495 Braga, Portugal; ICVS/3B’s-PT Government Associate Laboratory, 4715-495 Braga, Portugal
| | - Nicholas H. Oberlies
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
| | - Xiaofan Zhou
- Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Microbial Signals and Disease Control, Integrative Microbiology Research Centre, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Gustavo H. Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciencias Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, VU Station B #35–1634, Nashville, TN 37235, United States of America
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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19
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Chang PK, Hua SST. Are Current Aspergillus sojae Strains Originated from a Native Aflatoxigenic Aspergillus Species Population Also Present in California? MYCOBIOLOGY 2023; 51:139-147. [PMID: 37359951 PMCID: PMC10288891 DOI: 10.1080/12298093.2023.2217495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Aspergillus sojae has long been considered a domesticated strain of Aspergillus parasiticus. This study delineated relationships among the two species and an Aspergillus PWE36 isolate. Of 25 examined clustered aflatoxin genes of PWE36, 20 gene sequences were identical to those of A. sojae, but all had variations to those of A. parasiticus. Additionally, PWE36 developmental genes of conidiation and sclerotial formation, overall, shared higher degrees of nucleotide sequence identity with A. sojae genes than with A. parasiticus genes. Examination of defective cyclopiazonic acid gene clusters revealed that the PWE36 deletion pattern was identical only to those of A. sojae. Using A. sojae SMF134 genome sequence as a reference, visualization of locally collinear blocks indicated that PWE36 shared higher genome sequence homologies with A. sojae than with A. parasiticus. Phylogenetic inference based on genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and total SNP counts showed that A. sojae strains formed a monophyletic clade and were clonal. Two (Argentinian and Ugandan) A. parasiticus isolates but not including an Ethiopian isolate formed a monophyletic clade, which showed that A. parasiticus population is genetically diverse and distant to A. sojae. PWE36 and A. sojae shared a most recent common ancestor (MRCA). The estimated divergence time for PWE36 and A. sojae was about 0.4 mya. Unlike Aspergillus oryzae, another koji mold that includes genetically diverse populations, the findings that current A. sojae strains formed a monophyletic group and shared the MRCA with PWE36 allow A. sojae to be continuously treated as a species for food safety reasons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perng-Kuang Chang
- Southern Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | - Sui Sheng T. Hua
- Western Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Albany, CA, USA
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20
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Wang X, Jarmusch SA, Frisvad JC, Larsen TO. Current status of secondary metabolite pathways linked to their related biosynthetic gene clusters in Aspergillus section Nigri. Nat Prod Rep 2023; 40:237-274. [PMID: 35587705 DOI: 10.1039/d1np00074h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Covering: up to the end of 2021Aspergilli are biosynthetically 'talented' micro-organisms and therefore the natural products community has continually been interested in the wealth of biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) encoding numerous secondary metabolites related to these fungi. With the rapid increase in sequenced fungal genomes combined with the continuous development of bioinformatics tools such as antiSMASH, linking new structures to unknown BGCs has become much easier when taking retro-biosynthetic considerations into account. On the other hand, in most cases it is not as straightforward to prove proposed biosynthetic pathways due to the lack of implemented genetic tools in a given fungal species. As a result, very few secondary metabolite biosynthetic pathways have been characterized even amongst some of the most well studied Aspergillus spp., section Nigri (black aspergilli). This review will cover all known biosynthetic compound families and their structural diversity known from black aspergilli. We have logically divided this into sub-sections describing major biosynthetic classes (polyketides, non-ribosomal peptides, terpenoids, meroterpenoids and hybrid biosynthesis). Importantly, we will focus the review on metabolites which have been firmly linked to their corresponding BGCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinhui Wang
- DTU Bioengineering, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Scott A Jarmusch
- DTU Bioengineering, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Jens C Frisvad
- DTU Bioengineering, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Thomas O Larsen
- DTU Bioengineering, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
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21
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Hanafy RA, Wang Y, Stajich JE, Pratt CJ, Youssef NH, Elshahed MS. Phylogenomic analysis of the Neocallimastigomycota: proposal of Caecomycetaceae fam. nov., Piromycetaceae fam. nov., and emended description of the families Neocallimastigaceae and Anaeromycetaceae. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2023; 73. [PMID: 36827202 DOI: 10.1099/ijsem.0.005735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The anaerobic gut fungi (AGF) represent a coherent phylogenetic clade within the Mycota. Twenty genera have been described so far. Currently, the phylogenetic and evolutionary relationships between AGF genera remain poorly understood. Here, we utilized 52 transcriptomic datasets from 14 genera to resolve AGF inter-genus relationships using phylogenomics, and to provide a quantitative estimate (amino acid identity, AAI) for intermediate rank assignments. We identify four distinct supra-genus clades, encompassing all genera producing polyflagellated zoospores, bulbous rhizoids, the broadly circumscribed genus Piromyces, and the Anaeromyces and affiliated genera. We also identify the genus Khoyollomyces as the earliest evolving AGF genus. Concordance between phylogenomic outputs and RPB1 and D1/D2 LSU, but not RPB2, MCM7, EF1α or ITS1, phylogenies was observed. We combine phylogenomic analysis and AAI outputs with informative phenotypic traits to propose accommodating 14/20 AGF genera into four families: Caecomycetaceae fam. nov. (encompassing the genera Caecomyces and Cyllamyces), Piromycetaceae fam. nov. (encompassing the genus Piromyces), emend the description of the family Neocallimastigaceae to encompass the genera Neocallimastix, Orpinomyces, Pecoramyces, Feramyces, Ghazallomyces, Aestipascuomyces and Paucimyces, as well as the family Anaeromycetaceae to include the genera Oontomyces, Liebetanzomyces and Capellomyces in addition to Anaeromyces. We refrain from proposing families for the deeply branching genus Khoyollomyces and for genera with uncertain position (Buwchfawromyces, Joblinomyces, Tahromyces, Agriosomyces and Aklioshbomyces) pending availability of additional isolates and sequence data; and these genera are designated as 'genera incertae sedis' in the order Neocallimastigales. Our results establish an evolutionary-grounded Linnaean taxonomic framework for the AGF, provide quantitative estimates for rank assignments, and demonstrate the utility of RPB1 as an additional informative marker in Neocallimastigomycota taxonomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Radwa A Hanafy
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA.,Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Yan Wang
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3B2, Canada.,Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Jason E Stajich
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Carrie J Pratt
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA
| | - Noha H Youssef
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA
| | - Mostafa S Elshahed
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA
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22
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Petersen C, Sørensen T, Nielsen MR, Sondergaard TE, Sørensen JL, Fitzpatrick DA, Frisvad JC, Nielsen KL. Comparative genomic study of the Penicillium genus elucidates a diverse pangenome and 15 lateral gene transfer events. IMA Fungus 2023; 14:3. [PMID: 36726175 PMCID: PMC9893605 DOI: 10.1186/s43008-023-00108-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The Penicillia are known to produce a wide range natural products-some with devastating outcome for the agricultural industry and others with unexploited potential in different applications. However, a large-scale overview of the biosynthetic potential of different species has been lacking. In this study, we sequenced 93 Penicillium isolates and, together with eleven published genomes that hold similar assembly characteristics, we established a species phylogeny as well as defining a Penicillium pangenome. A total of 5612 genes were shared between ≥ 98 isolates corresponding to approximately half of the average number of genes a Penicillium genome holds. We further identified 15 lateral gene transfer events that have occurred in this collection of Penicillium isolates, which might have played an important role, such as niche adaption, in the evolution of these fungi. The comprehensive characterization of the genomic diversity in the Penicillium genus supersedes single-reference genomes, which do not necessarily capture the entire genetic variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Celine Petersen
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7H, 9220 Ålborg, Denmark
| | - Trine Sørensen
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7H, 9220 Ålborg, Denmark
| | - Mikkel R. Nielsen
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Niels-Bohrs Vej 8, 6700 Esbjerg, Denmark
| | - Teis E. Sondergaard
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7H, 9220 Ålborg, Denmark
| | - Jens L. Sørensen
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Niels-Bohrs Vej 8, 6700 Esbjerg, Denmark
| | - David A. Fitzpatrick
- grid.95004.380000 0000 9331 9029Department of Biology, Maynooth University, Maynooth, W23 F2K8 Ireland
| | - Jens C. Frisvad
- grid.5170.30000 0001 2181 8870Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads B221, 2800 Kgs, Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Kåre L. Nielsen
- grid.5117.20000 0001 0742 471XDepartment of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7H, 9220 Ålborg, Denmark
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23
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Smit MS, Maseme MJ, van Marwijk J, Aschenbrenner JC, Opperman DJ. Delineation of the CYP505E subfamily of fungal self-sufficient in-chain hydroxylating cytochrome P450 monooxygenases. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2023; 107:735-747. [PMID: 36607403 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-12329-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYP450s) are abundant in eukaryotes, specifically in plants and fungi where they play important roles in the synthesis and degradation of secondary metabolites. In eukaryotes, the best studied "self-sufficient" CYP450s, with a fused redox partner, belong to the CYP505 family. Members of the CYP505 family are generally considered sub-terminal fatty acid hydroxylases. CYP505E3 from Aspergillus terreus, however, gives remarkable in-chain hydroxylation at the ω-7 position of C10 to C16 alkanes and C12 and C14 fatty alcohols. Because CYP505E3 is a promising catalyst for the synthesis of δ-dodecalactone, we set out to delineate the unique ω-7 hydroxylase activity of CYP505E3. CYP505E3 and six additional CYP505Es as well as four closely related CYP505s from four different subfamilies were expressed in Pichia pastoris. Only the CYP505Es, sharing more than 70% amino acid identity, displayed significant ω-7 hydroxylase activity toward 1-dodecanol, dodecanoic acid, and tetradecanoic acid giving products that can readily be converted to δ-dodecalactone. Concentrations of δ-dodecalactone, directly extracted from dodecanoic acid biotransformations, were higher than previously obtained with E. coli. Searches of the UniProt and NCBI databases yielded a total of only 23 unique CYP505Es, all from the Aspergillaceae. Given that CYP505Es with this remarkable activity occur in only a few Aspergillus and Penicillium spp., we further explored the genetic environments in which they occur. These were found to be very distinct environments which include a specific ABC transporter but could not be linked to apparent secondary metabolite gene clusters. KEY POINTS: • Identified CYP505Es share > 70% amino acid identity. • CYP505Es hydroxylate 1-dodecanol, dodecanoic, and tetradecanoic acid at ω-7 position. • CYP505E genes occur in Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. near an ABC transporter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martha Sophia Smit
- Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. .,South African DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Catalysis, c*change, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
| | - Mpeyake Jacob Maseme
- Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,South African DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Catalysis, c*change, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Jacqueline van Marwijk
- Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,South African DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Catalysis, c*change, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Jasmin Cara Aschenbrenner
- Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,South African DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Catalysis, c*change, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Diederik Johannes Opperman
- Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,South African DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Catalysis, c*change, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
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24
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Ropars J, Giraud T. Convergence in domesticated fungi used for cheese and dry-cured meat maturation: beneficial traits, genomic mechanisms, and degeneration. Curr Opin Microbiol 2022; 70:102236. [PMID: 36368125 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2022.102236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Humans have domesticated genetically distant fungi for similar uses, the fermentation of lipid-rich and sugar-rich food to generate attractive aspects, odor and aroma, and to improve shelf life and product safety. Multiple independent domestication events also occurred within species. We review recent evidence of phenotypic convergence during the domestication of fungi for making cheese (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Penicillium roqueforti, P. camemberti, and Geotrichum candidum) and for dry-cured meat making (P. nalgiovense and P. salamii). Convergence following adaptation to similar ecological niches involved colony aspect (fluffiness and color), lipolysis, proteolysis, volatile compound production, and competitive ability against food spoilers. We review evidence for convergence in genetic diversity loss in domesticated populations and in the degeneration of unused traits, such as toxin production and sexual reproduction. Phenotypic convergence sometimes occurred by similar mechanisms of genomic adaptation, in particular horizontal gene transfers and loss of genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanne Ropars
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, IDEEV, Bâtiment 680, 12 route RD128, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Tatiana Giraud
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, IDEEV, Bâtiment 680, 12 route RD128, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
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25
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Steenwyk JL, Goltz DC, Buida TJ, Li Y, Shen XX, Rokas A. OrthoSNAP: A tree splitting and pruning algorithm for retrieving single-copy orthologs from gene family trees. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001827. [PMID: 36228036 PMCID: PMC9595520 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular evolution studies, such as phylogenomic studies and genome-wide surveys of selection, often rely on gene families of single-copy orthologs (SC-OGs). Large gene families with multiple homologs in 1 or more species-a phenomenon observed among several important families of genes such as transporters and transcription factors-are often ignored because identifying and retrieving SC-OGs nested within them is challenging. To address this issue and increase the number of markers used in molecular evolution studies, we developed OrthoSNAP, a software that uses a phylogenetic framework to simultaneously split gene families into SC-OGs and prune species-specific inparalogs. We term SC-OGs identified by OrthoSNAP as SNAP-OGs because they are identified using a splitting and pruning procedure analogous to snapping branches on a tree. From 415,129 orthologous groups of genes inferred across 7 eukaryotic phylogenomic datasets, we identified 9,821 SC-OGs; using OrthoSNAP on the remaining 405,308 orthologous groups of genes, we identified an additional 10,704 SNAP-OGs. Comparison of SNAP-OGs and SC-OGs revealed that their phylogenetic information content was similar, even in complex datasets that contain a whole-genome duplication, complex patterns of duplication and loss, transcriptome data where each gene typically has multiple transcripts, and contentious branches in the tree of life. OrthoSNAP is useful for increasing the number of markers used in molecular evolution data matrices, a critical step for robustly inferring and exploring the tree of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JLS); (AR)
| | - Dayna C. Goltz
- Independent Researcher, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Thomas J. Buida
- Independent Researcher, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Yuanning Li
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Xing-Xing Shen
- Ministry of Agriculture Key Lab of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany
- * E-mail: (JLS); (AR)
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26
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Zhang X, Noberini R, Bonaldi T, Collemare J, Seidl MF. The histone code of the fungal genus Aspergillus uncovered by evolutionary and proteomic analyses. Microb Genom 2022; 8. [PMID: 36129736 PMCID: PMC9676040 DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.000856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Chemical modifications of DNA and histone proteins impact the organization of chromatin within the nucleus. Changes in these modifications, catalysed by different chromatin-modifying enzymes, influence chromatin organization, which in turn is thought to impact the spatial and temporal regulation of gene expression. While combinations of different histone modifications, the histone code, have been studied in several model species, we know very little about histone modifications in the fungal genus Aspergillus, whose members are generally well studied due to their importance as models in cell and molecular biology as well as their medical and biotechnological relevance. Here, we used phylogenetic analyses in 94 Aspergilli as well as other fungi to uncover the occurrence and evolutionary trajectories of enzymes and protein complexes with roles in chromatin modifications or regulation. We found that these enzymes and complexes are highly conserved in Aspergilli, pointing towards a complex repertoire of chromatin modifications. Nevertheless, we also observed few recent gene duplications or losses, highlighting Aspergillus species to further study the roles of specific chromatin modifications. SET7 (KMT6) and other components of PRC2 (Polycomb Repressive Complex 2), which is responsible for methylation on histone H3 at lysine 27 in many eukaryotes including fungi, are absent in Aspergilli as well as in closely related Penicillium species, suggesting that these lost the capacity for this histone modification. We corroborated our computational predictions by performing untargeted MS analysis of histone post-translational modifications in Aspergillus nidulans. This systematic analysis will pave the way for future research into the complexity of the histone code and its functional implications on genome architecture and gene regulation in fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Zhang
- Theoretical Biology & Bioinformatics Group, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands.,Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Roberta Noberini
- Department of Experimental Oncology, IEO, European Institute of Oncology IRCCS, Via Adamello 16, 20139 Milan, Italy
| | - Tiziana Bonaldi
- Department of Experimental Oncology, IEO, European Institute of Oncology IRCCS, Via Adamello 16, 20139 Milan, Italy.,Department of Oncology and Haematology-Oncology, University of Milano, Via Santa Sofia 9/1, 20122 Milano, Italy
| | - Jerome Collemare
- Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Michael F Seidl
- Theoretical Biology & Bioinformatics Group, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
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27
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Demirtaş S, Budak M, Korkmaz EM, Searle JB, Bilton DT, Gündüz İ. The complete mitochondrial genome of Talpa martinorum (Mammalia: Talpidae), a mole species endemic to Thrace: genome content and phylogenetic considerations. Genetica 2022; 150:317-325. [PMID: 36029420 DOI: 10.1007/s10709-022-00162-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
The complete mitogenome sequence of Talpa martinorum, a recently described Balkan endemic mole, was assembled from next generation sequence data. The mitogenome is similar to that of the three other Talpa species sequenced to date, being 16,835 bp in length, and containing 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, an origin of L-strand replication, and a control region or D-loop. Compared to other Talpa mitogenomes sequenced to date, that of T. martinorum differs in the length of D-loop and stop codon usage. TAG and T-- are the stop codons for the ND1 and ATP8 genes, respectively, in T. martinorum, whilst TAA acts as a stop codon for both ND1 and ATP8 in the other three Talpa species sequenced. Phylogeny reconstructions based on Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian inference analyses yielded phylogenies with similar topologies, demonstrating that T. martinorum nests within the western lineage of the genus, being closely related to T. aquitania and T. occidentalis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sadık Demirtaş
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun, Turkey
| | - Mahir Budak
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Science, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkey
| | - Ertan M Korkmaz
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Science, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkey
| | - Jeremy B Searle
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853-2701, USA
| | - David T Bilton
- School of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8AA, UK.,Department of Zoology, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, PO Box 524, Johannesburg, 2006, South Africa
| | - İslam Gündüz
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun, Turkey.
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28
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Brown A, Mead ME, Steenwyk JL, Goldman GH, Rokas A. Extensive non-coding sequence divergence between the major human pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus and its relatives. FRONTIERS IN FUNGAL BIOLOGY 2022; 3:802494. [PMID: 36866034 PMCID: PMC9977105 DOI: 10.3389/ffunb.2022.802494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Invasive aspergillosis is a deadly fungal disease; more than 400,000 patients are infected worldwide each year and the mortality rate can be as high as 50-95%. Of the ~450 species in the genus Aspergillus only a few are known to be clinically relevant, with the major pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus being responsible for ~50% of all invasive mold infections. Genomic comparisons between A. fumigatus and other Aspergillus species have historically focused on protein-coding regions. However, most A. fumigatus genes, including those that modulate its virulence, are also present in other pathogenic and non-pathogenic closely related species. Our hypothesis is that differential gene regulation - mediated through the non-coding regions upstream of genes' first codon - contributes to A. fumigatus pathogenicity. To begin testing this, we compared non-coding regions upstream of the first codon of single-copy orthologous genes from the two A. fumigatus reference strains Af293 and A1163 and eight closely related Aspergillus section Fumigati species. We found that these non-coding regions showed extensive sequence variation and lack of homology across species. By examining the evolutionary rates of both protein-coding and non-coding regions in a subset of orthologous genes with highly conserved non-coding regions across the phylogeny, we identified 418 genes, including 25 genes known to modulate A. fumigatus virulence, whose non-coding regions exhibit a different rate of evolution in A. fumigatus. Examination of sequence alignments of these non-coding regions revealed numerous instances of insertions, deletions, and other types of mutations of at least a few nucleotides in A. fumigatus compared to its close relatives. These results show that closely related Aspergillus species that vary greatly in their pathogenicity exhibit extensive non-coding sequence variation and identify numerous changes in non-coding regions of A. fumigatus genes known to contribute to virulence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alec Brown
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Matthew E. Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Gustavo H. Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
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29
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Examination of Genome-Wide Ortholog Variation in Clinical and Environmental Isolates of the Fungal Pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus. mBio 2022; 13:e0151922. [PMID: 35766381 PMCID: PMC9426589 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01519-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Aspergillus fumigatus is both an environmental saprobe and an opportunistic human fungal pathogen. Knowledge of genomic variation across A. fumigatus isolates is essential for understanding the evolution of pathogenicity, virulence, and resistance to antifungal drugs. Here, we investigated 206 A. fumigatus isolates (133 clinical and 73 environmental isolates), aiming to identify genes with variable presence across isolates and test whether this variation was related to the clinical or environmental origin of isolates. The PanOrtho genome of A. fumigatus consists of 13,085 ortholog groups, of which 7,773 (59.4%) are shared by all isolates (core groups) and 5,312 (40.6%) vary in their gene presence across isolates (accessory groups plus singletons). Despite differences in the distribution of orthologs across all isolates, no significant differences were observed among clinical versus environmental isolates when phylogeny was accounted for. Orthologs that differ in their distribution across isolates tend to occur at low frequency and/or be restricted to specific isolates; thus, the degree of genomic conservation between orthologs of A. fumigatus is high. These results suggest that differences in the distribution of orthologs within A. fumigatus cannot be associated with the clinical or environmental origin of isolates. IMPORTANCE Aspergillus fumigatus is a cosmopolitan species of fungus responsible for thousands of cases of invasive disease annually. Clinical and environmental isolates of A. fumigatus exhibit extensive phenotypic differences, including differences related to virulence and antifungal drug resistance. A comprehensive survey of the genomic diversity present in A. fumigatus and its relationship to the clinical or environmental origin of isolates can contribute to the prediction of the mechanisms of evolution and infection of the species. Our results suggest that there is no significant variation in ortholog distribution between clinical and environmental isolates when accounting for evolutionary history. The work supports the hypothesis that environmental and clinical isolates of A. fumigatus do not differ in their gene contents.
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30
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Steenwyk JL, Buida Iii TJ, Gonçalves C, Goltz DC, Morales G, Mead ME, LaBella AL, Chavez CM, Schmitz JE, Hadjifrangiskou M, Li Y, Rokas A. BioKIT: a versatile toolkit for processing and analyzing diverse types of sequence data. Genetics 2022; 221:6583183. [PMID: 35536198 PMCID: PMC9252278 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyac079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Bioinformatic analysis-such as genome assembly quality assessment, alignment summary statistics, relative synonymous codon usage, file format conversion, and processing and analysis-is integrated into diverse disciplines in the biological sciences. Several command-line pieces of software have been developed to conduct some of these individual analyses, but unified toolkits that conduct all these analyses are lacking. To address this gap, we introduce BioKIT, a versatile command line toolkit that has, upon publication, 42 functions, several of which were community-sourced, that conduct routine and novel processing and analysis of genome assemblies, multiple sequence alignments, coding sequences, sequencing data, and more. To demonstrate the utility of BioKIT, we conducted a comprehensive examination of relative synonymous codon usage across 171 fungal genomes that use alternative genetic codes, showed that the novel metric of gene-wise relative synonymous codon usage can accurately estimate gene-wise codon optimization, evaluated the quality and characteristics of 901 eukaryotic genome assemblies, and calculated alignment summary statistics for 10 phylogenomic data matrices. BioKIT will be helpful in facilitating and streamlining sequence analysis workflows. BioKIT is freely available under the MIT license from GitHub (https://github.com/JLSteenwyk/BioKIT), PyPi (https://pypi.org/project/jlsteenwyk-biokit/), and the Anaconda Cloud (https://anaconda.org/jlsteenwyk/jlsteenwyk-biokit). Documentation, user tutorials, and instructions for requesting new features are available online (https://jlsteenwyk.com/BioKIT).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | | | - Carla Gonçalves
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Associate Laboratory i4HB-Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal.,UCIBIO-Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, Department of Life Sciences, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
| | | | - Grace Morales
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology & Immunology, Center for Personalized Microbiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Matthew E Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Abigail L LaBella
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Christina M Chavez
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Jonathan E Schmitz
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology & Immunology, Center for Personalized Microbiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Maria Hadjifrangiskou
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Department of Pathology, Microbiology & Immunology, Center for Personalized Microbiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Yuanning Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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31
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Rokas A. Evolution of the human pathogenic lifestyle in fungi. Nat Microbiol 2022; 7:607-619. [PMID: 35508719 PMCID: PMC9097544 DOI: 10.1038/s41564-022-01112-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 03/25/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Fungal pathogens cause more than a billion human infections every year, resulting in more than 1.6 million deaths annually. Understanding the natural history and evolutionary ecology of fungi is helping us understand how disease-relevant traits have repeatedly evolved. Different types and mechanisms of genetic variation have contributed to the evolution of fungal pathogenicity and specific genetic differences distinguish pathogens from non-pathogens. Insights into the traits, genetic elements, and genetic and ecological mechanisms that contribute to the evolution of fungal pathogenicity are crucial for developing strategies to both predict emergence of fungal pathogens and develop drugs to combat them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
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32
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Hill R, Buggs RJA, Vu DT, Gaya E. Lifestyle Transitions in Fusarioid Fungi are Frequent and Lack Clear Genomic Signatures. Mol Biol Evol 2022; 39:6575681. [PMID: 35484861 PMCID: PMC9051438 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The fungal genus Fusarium (Ascomycota) includes well-known plant pathogens that are implicated in diseases worldwide, and many of which have been genome sequenced. The genus also encompasses other diverse lifestyles, including species found ubiquitously as asymptomatic-plant inhabitants (endophytes). Here, we produced structurally annotated genome assemblies for five endophytic Fusarium strains, including the first whole-genome data for Fusarium chuoi. Phylogenomic reconstruction of Fusarium and closely related genera revealed multiple and frequent lifestyle transitions, the major exception being a monophyletic clade of mutualist insect symbionts. Differential codon usage bias and increased codon optimisation separated Fusarium sensu stricto from allied genera. We performed computational prediction of candidate secreted effector proteins (CSEPs) and carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes)—both likely to be involved in the host–fungal interaction—and sought evidence that their frequencies could predict lifestyle. However, phylogenetic distance described gene variance better than lifestyle did. There was no significant difference in CSEP, CAZyme, or gene repertoires between phytopathogenic and endophytic strains, although we did find some evidence that gene copy number variation may be contributing to pathogenicity. Large numbers of accessory CSEPs (i.e., present in more than one taxon but not all) and a comparatively low number of strain-specific CSEPs suggested there is a limited specialisation among plant associated Fusarium species. We also found half of the core genes to be under positive selection and identified specific CSEPs and CAZymes predicted to be positively selected on certain lineages. Our results depict fusarioid fungi as prolific generalists and highlight the difficulty in predicting pathogenic potential in the group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rowena Hill
- Comparative Fungal Biology, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Jodrell Laboratory, Richmond, United Kingdom.,School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Richard J A Buggs
- Comparative Fungal Biology, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Jodrell Laboratory, Richmond, United Kingdom.,School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Dang Toan Vu
- Research Planning and International Cooperation Department, Plant Resources Center, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Ester Gaya
- Comparative Fungal Biology, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Jodrell Laboratory, Richmond, United Kingdom
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33
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Li Q, Kong D, Wang Y, Dou Z, Huang W, Hu B, Dong F, Jiang H, Lv Q, Zheng Y, Ren Y, Liu G, Liu P, Jiang Y. Characterization of a rare clinical isolate of A. spinulosporus following a central nervous system infection. Microbes Infect 2022; 24:104973. [DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2022.104973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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34
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Lohmar JM, Rhoades NA, Patel TN, Proctor RH, Hammond TM, Brown DW. A-to-I mRNA editing controls spore death induced by a fungal meiotic drive gene in homologous and heterologous expression systems. Genetics 2022; 221:6528853. [PMID: 35166849 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyac029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 02/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Spore killers are meiotic drive elements that can block development of sexual spores in fungi. In the maize ear rot and mycotoxin-producing fungus Fusarium verticillioides, a spore killer called SkK has been mapped to a 102-kb interval of chromosome V. Here, we show that a gene within this interval, SKC1, is required for SkK-mediated spore killing and meiotic drive. We also demonstrate that SKC1 is associated with at least four transcripts, two sense (sense-SKC1a and sense-SKC1b) and two antisense (antisense-SKC1a and antisense-SKC1b). Both antisense SKC1 transcripts lack obvious protein-coding sequences and thus appear to be non-coding RNAs. In contrast, sense-SKC1a is a protein-coding transcript that undergoes A-to-I editing to sense-SKC1b in sexual tissue. Translation of sense-SKC1a produces a 70 amino acid protein (Skc1a), whereas translation of sense-SKC1b produces an 84 amino acid protein (Skc1b). Heterologous expression analysis of SKC1 transcripts shows that sense-SKC1a also undergoes A-to-I editing to sense-SKC1b during the Neurospora crassa sexual cycle. Site directed mutagenesis studies indicate that Skc1b is responsible for spore killing in F. verticillioides and that it induces most meiotic cells to die in N. crassa. Finally, we report that SKC1 homologs are present in over 20 Fusarium species. Overall, our results demonstrate that fungal meiotic drive elements like SKC1 can influence the outcome of meiosis by hijacking a cell's A-to-I editing machinery and that the involvement of A-to-I editing in a fungal meiotic drive system does not preclude its horizontal transfer to a distantly related species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica M Lohmar
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Unit, 1815 N. University St., Peoria, Illinois, 61604, USA
| | - Nicholas A Rhoades
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, 61790, USA
| | - Tejas N Patel
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, 61790, USA
| | - Robert H Proctor
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Unit, 1815 N. University St., Peoria, Illinois, 61604, USA
| | - Thomas M Hammond
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, 61790, USA
| | - Daren W Brown
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Unit, 1815 N. University St., Peoria, Illinois, 61604, USA
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35
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de Castro PA, Colabardini AC, Moraes M, Horta MAC, Knowles SL, Raja HA, Oberlies NH, Koyama Y, Ogawa M, Gomi K, Steenwyk JL, Rokas A, Gonçales RA, Duarte-Oliveira C, Carvalho A, Ries LNA, Goldman GH. Regulation of gliotoxin biosynthesis and protection in Aspergillus species. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1009965. [PMID: 35041649 PMCID: PMC8797188 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Aspergillus fumigatus causes a range of human and animal diseases collectively known as aspergillosis. A. fumigatus possesses and expresses a range of genetic determinants of virulence, which facilitate colonisation and disease progression, including the secretion of mycotoxins. Gliotoxin (GT) is the best studied A. fumigatus mycotoxin with a wide range of known toxic effects that impair human immune cell function. GT is also highly toxic to A. fumigatus and this fungus has evolved self-protection mechanisms that include (i) the GT efflux pump GliA, (ii) the GT neutralising enzyme GliT, and (iii) the negative regulation of GT biosynthesis by the bis-thiomethyltransferase GtmA. The transcription factor (TF) RglT is the main regulator of GliT and this GT protection mechanism also occurs in the non-GT producing fungus A. nidulans. However, the A. nidulans genome does not encode GtmA and GliA. This work aimed at analysing the transcriptional response to exogenous GT in A. fumigatus and A. nidulans, two distantly related Aspergillus species, and to identify additional components required for GT protection. RNA-sequencing shows a highly different transcriptional response to exogenous GT with the RglT-dependent regulon also significantly differing between A. fumigatus and A. nidulans. However, we were able to observe homologs whose expression pattern was similar in both species (43 RglT-independent and 11 RglT-dependent). Based on this approach, we identified a novel RglT-dependent methyltranferase, MtrA, involved in GT protection. Taking into consideration the occurrence of RglT-independent modulated genes, we screened an A. fumigatus deletion library of 484 transcription factors (TFs) for sensitivity to GT and identified 15 TFs important for GT self-protection. Of these, the TF KojR, which is essential for kojic acid biosynthesis in Aspergillus oryzae, was also essential for virulence and GT biosynthesis in A. fumigatus, and for GT protection in A. fumigatus, A. nidulans, and A. oryzae. KojR regulates rglT, gliT, gliJ expression and sulfur metabolism in Aspergillus species. Together, this study identified conserved components required for GT protection in Aspergillus species. A. fumigatus secretes mycotoxins that are essential for its virulence and pathogenicity. Gliotoxin (GT) is a sulfur-containing mycotoxin, which is known to impair several aspects of the human immune response. GT is also toxic to different fungal species, which have evolved several GT protection strategies. To further decipher these responses, we used transcriptional profiling aiming to compare the response to GT in the GT producer A. fumigatus and the GT non-producer A. nidulans. This analysis allowed us to identify additional genes with a potential role in GT protection. We also identified 15 transcription factors (TFs) encoded in the A. fumigatus genome that are important for conferring resistance to exogenous gliotoxin. One of these TFs, KojR, which is essential for A. oryzae kojic acid production, is also important for virulence in A. fumigatus and GT protection in A. fumigatus, A. nidulans and A. oryzae. KojR regulates the expression of genes important for gliotoxin biosynthesis and protection, and sulfur metabolism. Together, this work identified conserved components required for gliotoxin protection in Aspergillus species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia Alves de Castro
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Ana Cristina Colabardini
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Maísa Moraes
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | | | - Sonja L. Knowles
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, North Carolina United States of America
| | - Huzefa A. Raja
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, North Carolina United States of America
| | - Nicholas H. Oberlies
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, North Carolina United States of America
| | - Yasuji Koyama
- Noda Institute for Scientific Research, 338 Noda, Chiba, Japan
| | - Masahiro Ogawa
- Noda Institute for Scientific Research, 338 Noda, Chiba, Japan
| | - Katsuya Gomi
- Department of Bioindustrial Informatics and Genomics, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Relber A. Gonçales
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B’s—PT Government Associate Laboratory, Guimarães/Braga, Portugal
| | - Cláudio Duarte-Oliveira
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B’s—PT Government Associate Laboratory, Guimarães/Braga, Portugal
| | - Agostinho Carvalho
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B’s—PT Government Associate Laboratory, Guimarães/Braga, Portugal
| | - Laure N. A. Ries
- MRC Centre for Medical Mycology at the University of Exeter, Geoffrey Pope Building, Exeter, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (LNAR); (GHG)
| | - Gustavo H. Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
- * E-mail: (LNAR); (GHG)
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36
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Cornet L, D'hooge E, Magain N, Stubbe D, Packeu A, Baurain D, Becker P. The taxonomy of the Trichophyton rubrum complex: a phylogenomic approach. Microb Genom 2021; 7. [PMID: 34730487 PMCID: PMC8743564 DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.000707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The medically relevant Trichophyton rubrum species complex has a variety of phenotypic presentations but shows relatively little genetic differences. Conventional barcodes, such as the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region or the beta-tubulin gene, are not able to completely resolve the relationships between these closely related taxa. T. rubrum, T. soudanense and T. violaceum are currently accepted as separate species. However, the status of certain variants, including the T. rubrum morphotypes megninii and kuryangei and the T. violaceum morphotype yaoundei, remains to be deciphered. We conducted the first phylogenomic analysis of the T. rubrum species complex by studying 3105 core genes of 18 new strains from the BCCM/IHEM culture collection and nine publicly available genomes. Our analyses revealed a highly resolved phylogenomic tree with six separate clades. Trichophyton rubrum, T. violaceum and T. soudanense were confirmed in their status of species. The morphotypes T. megninii, T. kuryangei and T. yaoundei all grouped in their own respective clade with high support, suggesting that these morphotypes should be reinstituted to the species-level. Robinson-Foulds distance analyses showed that a combination of two markers (a ubiquitin-protein transferase and a MYB DNA-binding domain-containing protein) can mirror the phylogeny obtained using genomic data, and thus represent potential new markers to accurately distinguish the species belonging to the T. rubrum complex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luc Cornet
- BCCM/IHEM, Mycology and Aerobiology, Sciensano, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Elizabet D'hooge
- BCCM/IHEM, Mycology and Aerobiology, Sciensano, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Nicolas Magain
- InBioS, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Dirk Stubbe
- BCCM/IHEM, Mycology and Aerobiology, Sciensano, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Ann Packeu
- BCCM/IHEM, Mycology and Aerobiology, Sciensano, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Denis Baurain
- InBioS, PhytoSYSTEMS, Eukaryotic Phylogenomics, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Pierre Becker
- BCCM/IHEM, Mycology and Aerobiology, Sciensano, Bruxelles, Belgium
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37
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Krogerus K, Eerikäinen R, Aisala H, Gibson B. Repurposing brewery contaminant yeast as production strains for low-alcohol beer fermentation. Yeast 2021; 39:156-169. [PMID: 34664308 DOI: 10.1002/yea.3674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2021] [Revised: 09/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
A number of fungal isolates were recently obtained from a survey of the microbiota of multiple breweries and brewery products. Here, we sought to explore whether any of these brewery contaminants could be repurposed for beneficial use in beer fermentations, with particular focus on low-alcohol beer. There were 56 yeast strains first screened for the utilization of different carbon sources, ability to ferment brewer's wort, and formation of desirable aroma compounds. A number of strains appeared maltose-negative and produced desirable aromas without obvious off-flavours. These were selected for further scaled-up wort fermentations. The selected strains efficiently reduced wort aldehydes during fermentation, thus eliminating undesirable wort-like off-flavours, and produced a diverse volatile aroma profile. Two strains, Trigonopsis cantarellii and Candida sojae, together with a commercial Saccharomycodes ludwigii reference strain, were selected for 30-L-scale wort fermentations based on aroma profile and similarity to a commercial reference beer during sensory analysis using projective mapping. Both strains performed comparably to the commercial reference, and the T. cantarellii strain in particular, produced low amounts of off-flavours and a significantly higher amount of the desirable monoterpene alcohol trans-geraniol. The strain was also sensitive to common food preservatives and antifungal compounds and unable to grow at 37°C, suggesting it is relatively easily controllable in the brewery, and appears to have low risk of pathogenicity. This study shows how the natural brewery microbiota can be exploited as a source of non-conventional yeasts for low-alcohol beer production.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Heikki Aisala
- VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Espoo, Finland
| | - Brian Gibson
- Department of Brewing and Beverage Technology, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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38
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Christiansen JV, Isbrandt T, Petersen C, Sondergaard TE, Nielsen MR, Pedersen TB, Sørensen JL, Larsen TO, Frisvad JC. Fungal quinones: diversity, producers, and applications of quinones from Aspergillus, Penicillium, Talaromyces, Fusarium, and Arthrinium. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2021; 105:8157-8193. [PMID: 34625822 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11597-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2021] [Revised: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 09/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Quinones represent an important group of highly structurally diverse, mainly polyketide-derived secondary metabolites widely distributed among filamentous fungi. Many quinones have been reported to have important biological functions such as inhibition of bacteria or repression of the immune response in insects. Other quinones, such as ubiquinones are known to be essential molecules in cellular respiration, and many quinones are known to protect their producing organisms from exposure to sunlight. Most recently, quinones have also attracted a lot of industrial interest since their electron-donating and -accepting properties make them good candidates as electrolytes in redox flow batteries, like their often highly conjugated double bond systems make them attractive as pigments. On an industrial level, quinones are mainly synthesized from raw components in coal tar. However, the possibility of producing quinones by fungal cultivation has great prospects since fungi can often be grown in industrially scaled bioreactors, producing valuable metabolites on cheap substrates. In order to give a better overview of the secondary metabolite quinones produced by and shared between various fungi, mainly belonging to the genera Aspergillus, Penicillium, Talaromyces, Fusarium, and Arthrinium, this review categorizes quinones into families such as emodins, fumigatins, sorbicillinoids, yanuthones, and xanthomegnins, depending on structural similarities and information about the biosynthetic pathway from which they are derived, whenever applicable. The production of these quinone families is compared between the different genera, based on recently revised taxonomy. KEY POINTS: • Quinones represent an important group of secondary metabolites widely distributed in important fungal genera such as Aspergillus, Penicillium, Talaromyces, Fusarium, and Arthrinium. • Quinones are of industrial interest and can be used in pharmacology, as colorants and pigments, and as electrolytes in redox flow batteries. • Quinones are grouped into families and compared between genera according to the revised taxonomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- J V Christiansen
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - T Isbrandt
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - C Petersen
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, 9220, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - T E Sondergaard
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, 9220, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - M R Nielsen
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, 6700, Esbjerg, Denmark
| | - T B Pedersen
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, 6700, Esbjerg, Denmark
| | - J L Sørensen
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, 6700, Esbjerg, Denmark
| | - T O Larsen
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - J C Frisvad
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
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39
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Phillips MA, Steenwyk JL, Shen XX, Rokas A. Examination of Gene Loss in the DNA Mismatch Repair Pathway and Its Mutational Consequences in a Fungal Phylum. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab219. [PMID: 34554246 PMCID: PMC8597960 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The DNA mismatch repair (MMR) pathway corrects mismatched bases produced during DNA replication and is highly conserved across the tree of life, reflecting its fundamental importance for genome integrity. Loss of function in one or a few MMR genes can lead to increased mutation rates and microsatellite instability, as seen in some human cancers. Although loss of MMR genes has been documented in the context of human disease and in hypermutant strains of pathogens, examples of entire species and species lineages that have experienced substantial MMR gene loss are lacking. We examined the genomes of 1,107 species in the fungal phylum Ascomycota for the presence of 52 genes known to be involved in the MMR pathway of fungi. We found that the median ascomycete genome contained 49/52 MMR genes. In contrast, four closely related species of obligate plant parasites from the powdery mildew genera Erysiphe and Blumeria, have lost between five and 21 MMR genes, including MLH3, EXO1, and DPB11. The lost genes span MMR functions, include genes that are conserved in all other ascomycetes, and loss of function of any of these genes alone has been previously linked to increased mutation rate. Consistent with the hypothesis that loss of these genes impairs MMR pathway function, we found that powdery mildew genomes with higher levels of MMR gene loss exhibit increased numbers of mononucleotide runs, longer microsatellites, accelerated sequence evolution, elevated mutational bias in the A|T direction, and decreased GC content. These results identify a striking example of macroevolutionary loss of multiple MMR pathway genes in a eukaryotic lineage, even though the mutational outcomes of these losses appear to resemble those associated with detrimental MMR dysfunction in other organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Xing-Xing Shen
- Institute of Insect Sciences, Ministry of Agriculture Key Lab of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, USA
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40
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dos Santos RAC, Mead ME, Steenwyk JL, Rivero-Menéndez O, Alastruey-Izquierdo A, Goldman GH, Rokas A. Examining Signatures of Natural Selection in Antifungal Resistance Genes Across Aspergillus Fungi. FRONTIERS IN FUNGAL BIOLOGY 2021; 2:723051. [PMID: 37744093 PMCID: PMC10512362 DOI: 10.3389/ffunb.2021.723051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2021] [Indexed: 09/26/2023]
Abstract
Certain Aspergillus fungi cause aspergillosis, a set of diseases that typically affect immunocompromised individuals. Most cases of aspergillosis are caused by Aspergillus fumigatus, which infects millions of people annually. Some closely related so-called cryptic species, such as Aspergillus lentulus, can also cause aspergillosis, albeit at lower frequencies, and they are also clinically relevant. Few antifungal drugs are currently available for treating aspergillosis and there is increasing worldwide concern about the presence of antifungal drug resistance in Aspergillus species. Furthermore, isolates from both A. fumigatus and other Aspergillus pathogens exhibit substantial heterogeneity in their antifungal drug resistance profiles. To gain insights into the evolution of antifungal drug resistance genes in Aspergillus, we investigated signatures of positive selection in 41 genes known to be involved in drug resistance across 42 susceptible and resistant isolates from 12 Aspergillus section Fumigati species. Using codon-based site models of sequence evolution, we identified ten genes that contain 43 sites with signatures of ancient positive selection across our set of species. None of the sites that have experienced positive selection overlap with sites previously reported to be involved in drug resistance. These results identify sites that likely experienced ancient positive selection in Aspergillus genes involved in resistance to antifungal drugs and suggest that historical selective pressures on these genes likely differ from any current selective pressures imposed by antifungal drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renato Augusto Corrêa dos Santos
- Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Matthew E. Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Olga Rivero-Menéndez
- Medical Mycology Reference Laboratory, National Center for Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo
- Medical Mycology Reference Laboratory, National Center for Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - Gustavo Henrique Goldman
- Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
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41
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Steenwyk JL, Mead ME, de Castro PA, Valero C, Damasio A, dos Santos RAC, Labella AL, Li Y, Knowles SL, Raja HA, Oberlies NH, Zhou X, Cornely OA, Fuchs F, Koehler P, Goldman GH, Rokas A. Genomic and Phenotypic Analysis of COVID-19-Associated Pulmonary Aspergillosis Isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus. Microbiol Spectr 2021; 9:e0001021. [PMID: 34106569 PMCID: PMC8552514 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00010-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The ongoing global pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), first described in Wuhan, China. A subset of COVID-19 patients has been reported to have acquired secondary infections by microbial pathogens, such as opportunistic fungal pathogens from the genus Aspergillus. To gain insight into COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA), we analyzed the genomes and characterized the phenotypic profiles of four CAPA isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus obtained from patients treated in the area of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. By examining the mutational spectrum of single nucleotide polymorphisms, insertion-deletion polymorphisms, and copy number variants among 206 genes known to modulate A. fumigatus virulence, we found that CAPA isolate genomes do not exhibit significant differences from the genome of the Af293 reference strain. By examining a number of factors, including virulence in an invertebrate moth model, growth in the presence of osmotic, cell wall, and oxidative stressors, secondary metabolite biosynthesis, and the MIC of antifungal drugs, we found that CAPA isolates were generally, but not always, similar to A. fumigatus reference strains Af293 and CEA17. Notably, CAPA isolate D had more putative loss-of-function mutations in genes known to increase virulence when deleted. Moreover, CAPA isolate D was significantly more virulent than the other three CAPA isolates and the A. fumigatus reference strains Af293 and CEA17, but similarly virulent to two other clinical strains of A. fumigatus. These findings expand our understanding of the genomic and phenotypic characteristics of isolates that cause CAPA. IMPORTANCE The global pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the etiological agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has already killed millions of people. COVID-19 patient outcome can be further complicated by secondary infections, such as COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA). CAPA is caused by Aspergillus fungal pathogens, but there is little information about the genomic and phenotypic characteristics of CAPA isolates. We conducted genome sequencing and extensive phenotyping of four CAPA isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus from Germany. We found that CAPA isolates were often, but not always, similar to other reference strains of A. fumigatus across 206 genetic determinants of infection-relevant phenotypes, including virulence. For example, CAPA isolate D was more virulent than other CAPA isolates and reference strains in an invertebrate model of fungal disease, but similarly virulent to two other clinical strains. These results expand our understanding of COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob L. Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Matthew E. Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Patrícia Alves de Castro
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Clara Valero
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - André Damasio
- Institute of Biology, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas-SP, Brazil
- Experimental Medicine Research Cluster (EMRC), University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas-SP, Brazil
| | - Renato A. C. dos Santos
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Abigail L. Labella
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Yuanning Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Sonja L. Knowles
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
| | - Huzefa A. Raja
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
| | - Nicholas H. Oberlies
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
| | - Xiaofan Zhou
- Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Microbial Signals and Disease Control, Integrative Microbiology Research Centre, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Oliver A. Cornely
- University of Cologne, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Cologne, Department I of Internal Medicine, Excellence Center for Medical Mycology (ECMM), Cologne, Germany
- University of Cologne, Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), Cologne, Germany
- ZKS Köln, Clinical Trials Centre Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner Site Bonn‐Cologne, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Frieder Fuchs
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Hygiene, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Philipp Koehler
- University of Cologne, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Cologne, Department I of Internal Medicine, Excellence Center for Medical Mycology (ECMM), Cologne, Germany
- University of Cologne, Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), Cologne, Germany
| | - Gustavo H. Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
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Bokor E, Flipphi M, Kocsubé S, Ámon J, Vágvölgyi C, Scazzocchio C, Hamari Z. Genome organization and evolution of a eukaryotic nicotinate co-inducible pathway. Open Biol 2021; 11:210099. [PMID: 34582709 PMCID: PMC8478523 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.210099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
In Aspergillus nidulans a regulon including 11 hxn genes (hxnS, T, R, P, Y, Z, X, W, V, M and N) is inducible by a nicotinate metabolic derivative, repressible by ammonium and under stringent control of the nitrogen-state-sensitive GATA factor AreA and the specific transcription factor HxnR. This is the first report in a eukaryote of the genomic organization of a possibly complete pathway of nicotinate utilization. In A. nidulans the regulon is organized in three distinct clusters, this organization is variable in the Ascomycota. In some Pezizomycotina species all 11 genes map in a single cluster; in others they map in two clusters. This variable organization sheds light on cluster evolution. Instances of gene duplication followed by or simultaneous with integration in the cluster, partial or total cluster loss, and horizontal gene transfer of several genes (including an example of whole cluster re-acquisition in Aspergillus of section Flavi) were detected, together with the incorporation in some clusters of genes not found in the A. nidulans co-regulated regulon, which underlie both the plasticity and the reticulate character of metabolic cluster evolution. This study provides a comprehensive phylogeny of six members of the cluster across representatives of all Ascomycota classes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eszter Bokor
- Department of Microbiology, University of Szeged Faculty of Science and Informatics, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Michel Flipphi
- Institute de Génétique et Microbiologie, Université Paris-Sud, Orsay, France
| | - Sándor Kocsubé
- Department of Microbiology, University of Szeged Faculty of Science and Informatics, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Judit Ámon
- Department of Microbiology, University of Szeged Faculty of Science and Informatics, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Csaba Vágvölgyi
- Department of Microbiology, University of Szeged Faculty of Science and Informatics, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Claudio Scazzocchio
- Department of Microbiology, Imperial College, London, UK,Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), Gif-sur-Yvette 91198, France
| | - Zsuzsanna Hamari
- Department of Microbiology, University of Szeged Faculty of Science and Informatics, Szeged, Hungary
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Mongiardino Koch N. Phylogenomic Subsampling and the Search for Phylogenetically Reliable Loci. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:4025-4038. [PMID: 33983409 DOI: 10.1101/2021.02.13.431075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Phylogenomic subsampling is a procedure by which small sets of loci are selected from large genome-scale data sets and used for phylogenetic inference. This step is often motivated by either computational limitations associated with the use of complex inference methods or as a means of testing the robustness of phylogenetic results by discarding loci that are deemed potentially misleading. Although many alternative methods of phylogenomic subsampling have been proposed, little effort has gone into comparing their behavior across different data sets. Here, I calculate multiple gene properties for a range of phylogenomic data sets spanning animal, fungal, and plant clades, uncovering a remarkable predictability in their patterns of covariance. I also show how these patterns provide a means for ordering loci by both their rate of evolution and their relative phylogenetic usefulness. This method of retrieving phylogenetically useful loci is found to be among the top performing when compared with alternative subsampling protocols. Relatively common approaches such as minimizing potential sources of systematic bias or increasing the clock-likeness of the data are found to fare worse than selecting loci at random. Likewise, the general utility of rate-based subsampling is found to be limited: loci evolving at both low and high rates are among the least effective, and even those evolving at optimal rates can still widely differ in usefulness. This study shows that many common subsampling approaches introduce unintended effects in off-target gene properties and proposes an alternative multivariate method that simultaneously optimizes phylogenetic signal while controlling for known sources of bias.
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Abstract
Phylogenomic subsampling is a procedure by which small sets of loci are selected from large genome-scale data sets and used for phylogenetic inference. This step is often motivated by either computational limitations associated with the use of complex inference methods or as a means of testing the robustness of phylogenetic results by discarding loci that are deemed potentially misleading. Although many alternative methods of phylogenomic subsampling have been proposed, little effort has gone into comparing their behavior across different data sets. Here, I calculate multiple gene properties for a range of phylogenomic data sets spanning animal, fungal, and plant clades, uncovering a remarkable predictability in their patterns of covariance. I also show how these patterns provide a means for ordering loci by both their rate of evolution and their relative phylogenetic usefulness. This method of retrieving phylogenetically useful loci is found to be among the top performing when compared with alternative subsampling protocols. Relatively common approaches such as minimizing potential sources of systematic bias or increasing the clock-likeness of the data are found to fare worse than selecting loci at random. Likewise, the general utility of rate-based subsampling is found to be limited: loci evolving at both low and high rates are among the least effective, and even those evolving at optimal rates can still widely differ in usefulness. This study shows that many common subsampling approaches introduce unintended effects in off-target gene properties and proposes an alternative multivariate method that simultaneously optimizes phylogenetic signal while controlling for known sources of bias.
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46
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Mead ME, Borowsky AT, Joehnk B, Steenwyk JL, Shen XX, Sil A, Rokas A. Recurrent Loss of abaA, a Master Regulator of Asexual Development in Filamentous Fungi, Correlates with Changes in Genomic and Morphological Traits. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 12:1119-1130. [PMID: 32442273 PMCID: PMC7531577 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) drive developmental and cellular differentiation, and variation in their architectures gives rise to morphological diversity. Pioneering studies in Aspergillus fungi, coupled with subsequent work in other filamentous fungi, have shown that the GRN governed by the BrlA, AbaA, and WetA proteins controls the development of the asexual fruiting body or conidiophore. A specific aspect of conidiophore development is the production of phialides, conidiophore structures that are under the developmental control of AbaA and function to repetitively generate spores. Fungal genome sequencing has revealed that some filamentous fungi lack abaA, and also produce asexual structures that lack phialides, raising the hypothesis that abaA loss is functionally linked to diversity in asexual fruiting body morphology. To examine this hypothesis, we carried out an extensive search for the abaA gene across 241 genomes of species from the fungal subphylum Pezizomycotina. We found that abaA was independently lost in four lineages of Eurotiomycetes, including from all sequenced species within the order Onygenales, and that all four lineages that have lost abaA also lack the ability to form phialides. Genetic restoration of abaA from Aspergillus nidulans into Histoplasma capsulatum, a pathogenic species from the order Onygenales that lacks an endogenous copy of abaA, did not alter Histoplasma conidiation morphology but resulted in a marked increase in spore viability. We also discovered that species lacking abaA contain fewer AbaA binding motifs in the regulatory regions of orthologs of some AbaA target genes, suggesting that the asexual fruiting body GRN of organisms that have lost abaA has likely been rewired. Our results provide an illustration of how repeated losses of a key regulatory transcription factor have contributed to the diversity of an iconic fungal morphological trait.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew E Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University
| | | | - Bastian Joehnk
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of California San Francisco
| | | | - Xing-Xing Shen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University
| | - Anita Sil
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of California San Francisco
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University
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Yamamoto N, Watarai N, Koyano H, Sawada K, Toyoda A, Kurokawa K, Yamada T. Analysis of genomic characteristics and their influence on metabolism in Aspergillus luchuensis albino mutants using genome sequencing. Fungal Genet Biol 2021; 155:103601. [PMID: 34224861 DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2021.103601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2019] [Revised: 06/17/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Black Aspergillus luchuensis and its white albino mutant are essential fungi for making alcoholic beverages in Japan. A large number of industrial strains have been created using novel isolation or gene/genome mutation techniques. Such mutations influence metabolic and phenotypic characteristics in industrial strains, but few comparative studies of inter-strain mutation have been conducted. We carried out comparative genome analyses of 8 industrial strains of A. luchuensis and A. kawachii IFO 4308, the latter being the first albino strain to be isolated. Phylogenetic analysis based on 8938 concatenated genes exposed the diversity of black koji strains and uniformity among albino industrial strains, suggesting that passaged industrial albino strains have more genetic mutations compared with strain IFO 4308 and black koji strains. Comparative analysis showed that the albino strains had mutations in genes not only for conidial pigmentation but also in those that encode N-terminal acetyltransferase A and annexin XIV-like protein. The results also suggest that some mutations may have emerged through subculturing of albino strains. For example, mutations in the genes for isocitrate lyase and sugar transporters were observed only in industrial albino strains. This implies that selective pressure for increasing enzyme activity or secondary metabolites may have influenced the mutation of genes associated with environmental stress responses in A. luchuensis albino strains. Our study clarifies hitherto unknown genetic and metabolic characteristics of A. luchuensis industrial strains and provides potential applications for comparative genome analysis for breeding koji strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nozomi Yamamoto
- Department of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan
| | - Naoki Watarai
- Department of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Koyano
- Department of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan
| | - Kazunori Sawada
- Corporate Strategy Office, Gurunavi, Inc., Toho Hibiya Building, 1-2-2 Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0006, Japan
| | - Atsushi Toyoda
- Department of Genomics and Evolutionary Biology, National Institute of Genetics, Yata 1111, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Ken Kurokawa
- Department of Informatics, National Institute of Genetics, Yata 1111, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Takuji Yamada
- Department of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan.
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48
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Geiser DM, Al-Hatmi AMS, Aoki T, Arie T, Balmas V, Barnes I, Bergstrom GC, Bhattacharyya MK, Blomquist CL, Bowden RL, Brankovics B, Brown DW, Burgess LW, Bushley K, Busman M, Cano-Lira JF, Carrillo JD, Chang HX, Chen CY, Chen W, Chilvers M, Chulze S, Coleman JJ, Cuomo CA, de Beer ZW, de Hoog GS, Del Castillo-Múnera J, Del Ponte EM, Diéguez-Uribeondo J, Di Pietro A, Edel-Hermann V, Elmer WH, Epstein L, Eskalen A, Esposto MC, Everts KL, Fernández-Pavía SP, da Silva GF, Foroud NA, Fourie G, Frandsen RJN, Freeman S, Freitag M, Frenkel O, Fuller KK, Gagkaeva T, Gardiner DM, Glenn AE, Gold SE, Gordon TR, Gregory NF, Gryzenhout M, Guarro J, Gugino BK, Gutierrez S, Hammond-Kosack KE, Harris LJ, Homa M, Hong CF, Hornok L, Huang JW, Ilkit M, Jacobs A, Jacobs K, Jiang C, Jiménez-Gasco MDM, Kang S, Kasson MT, Kazan K, Kennell JC, Kim HS, Kistler HC, Kuldau GA, Kulik T, Kurzai O, Laraba I, Laurence MH, Lee T, Lee YW, Lee YH, Leslie JF, Liew ECY, Lofton LW, Logrieco AF, López-Berges MS, Luque AG, Lysøe E, Ma LJ, Marra RE, Martin FN, May SR, McCormick SP, McGee C, Meis JF, Migheli Q, Mohamed Nor NMI, Monod M, Moretti A, Mostert D, Mulè G, Munaut F, Munkvold GP, Nicholson P, Nucci M, O'Donnell K, Pasquali M, Pfenning LH, Prigitano A, Proctor RH, Ranque S, Rehner SA, Rep M, Rodríguez-Alvarado G, Rose LJ, Roth MG, Ruiz-Roldán C, Saleh AA, Salleh B, Sang H, Scandiani MM, Scauflaire J, Schmale DG, Short DPG, Šišić A, Smith JA, Smyth CW, Son H, Spahr E, Stajich JE, Steenkamp E, Steinberg C, Subramaniam R, Suga H, Summerell BA, Susca A, Swett CL, Toomajian C, Torres-Cruz TJ, Tortorano AM, Urban M, Vaillancourt LJ, Vallad GE, van der Lee TAJ, Vanderpool D, van Diepeningen AD, Vaughan MM, Venter E, Vermeulen M, Verweij PE, Viljoen A, Waalwijk C, Wallace EC, Walther G, Wang J, Ward TJ, Wickes BL, Wiederhold NP, Wingfield MJ, Wood AKM, Xu JR, Yang XB, Yli-Mattila T, Yun SH, Zakaria L, Zhang H, Zhang N, Zhang SX, Zhang X. Phylogenomic Analysis of a 55.1-kb 19-Gene Dataset Resolves a Monophyletic Fusarium that Includes the Fusarium solani Species Complex. PHYTOPATHOLOGY 2021; 111:1064-1079. [PMID: 33200960 DOI: 10.1094/phyto-08-20-0330-le] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Scientific communication is facilitated by a data-driven, scientifically sound taxonomy that considers the end-user's needs and established successful practice. In 2013, the Fusarium community voiced near unanimous support for a concept of Fusarium that represented a clade comprising all agriculturally and clinically important Fusarium species, including the F. solani species complex (FSSC). Subsequently, this concept was challenged in 2015 by one research group who proposed dividing the genus Fusarium into seven genera, including the FSSC described as members of the genus Neocosmospora, with subsequent justification in 2018 based on claims that the 2013 concept of Fusarium is polyphyletic. Here, we test this claim and provide a phylogeny based on exonic nucleotide sequences of 19 orthologous protein-coding genes that strongly support the monophyly of Fusarium including the FSSC. We reassert the practical and scientific argument in support of a genus Fusarium that includes the FSSC and several other basal lineages, consistent with the longstanding use of this name among plant pathologists, medical mycologists, quarantine officials, regulatory agencies, students, and researchers with a stake in its taxonomy. In recognition of this monophyly, 40 species described as genus Neocosmospora were recombined in genus Fusarium, and nine others were renamed Fusarium. Here the global Fusarium community voices strong support for the inclusion of the FSSC in Fusarium, as it remains the best scientific, nomenclatural, and practical taxonomic option available.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Geiser
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | | | - Takayuki Aoki
- Genetic Resources Center, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Tsutomu Arie
- Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Fuchu, Japan
| | - Virgilio Balmas
- Dipartimento di Agraria, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Irene Barnes
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Gary C Bergstrom
- Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Section, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, U.S.A
| | | | - Cheryl L Blomquist
- Plant Pest Diagnostics Branch, California Department of Food and Agriculture, Sacramento, CA 95832, U.S.A
| | - Robert L Bowden
- Hard Winter Wheat Genetics Research Unit, U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS), Manhattan, KS 66506, U.S.A
| | - Balázs Brankovics
- Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Daren W Brown
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Lester W Burgess
- Sydney Institute of Agriculture, Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Kathryn Bushley
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, U.S.A
| | - Mark Busman
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - José F Cano-Lira
- Mycology Unit and IISPV, Universitat Rovira i Virgili Medical School, Reus, Spain
| | - Joseph D Carrillo
- Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Wimauma, FL 33598, U.S.A
| | - Hao-Xun Chang
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chi-Yu Chen
- Department of Plant Pathology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Wanquan Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Martin Chilvers
- Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, U.S.A
| | - Sofia Chulze
- Research Institute on Mycology and Mycotoxicology, National Scientific and Technical Research Council, National University of Rio Cuarto, Rio Cuarto, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Jeffrey J Coleman
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, U.S.A
| | | | - Z Wilhelm de Beer
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - G Sybren de Hoog
- Department of Medical Mycology and Infectious Diseases, Center of Expertise in Mycology, Radboud University Medical Center, Canisius Wilhelmina Hospital, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Emerson M Del Ponte
- Departamento de Fitopatologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Brazil
| | | | - Antonio Di Pietro
- Departamento de Genética, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | | | - Wade H Elmer
- Department of Plant Pathology and Ecology, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, CT 06504, U.S.A
| | - Lynn Epstein
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, U.S.A
| | - Akif Eskalen
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, U.S.A
| | | | - Kathryne L Everts
- Wye Research and Education Center, University of Maryland, Queenstown, MD 21658, U.S.A
| | - Sylvia P Fernández-Pavía
- Laboratorio de Patología Vegetal, Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias y Forestales, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Tarímbaro, Michoacán 58880, México
| | | | - Nora A Foroud
- Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 4B1, Canada
| | - Gerda Fourie
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Rasmus J N Frandsen
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Stanley Freeman
- Department of Plant Pathology and Weed Research, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Rishon LeZion, Israel
| | - Michael Freitag
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, U.S.A
| | - Omer Frenkel
- Department of Plant Pathology and Weed Research, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Rishon LeZion, Israel
| | - Kevin K Fuller
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, U.S.A
| | - Tatiana Gagkaeva
- Laboratory of Mycology and Phytopathology, All-Russian Institute of Plant Protection, St. Petersburg-Pushkin, Russia
| | | | - Anthony E Glenn
- Toxicology and Mycotoxin Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Athens, GA 30605, U.S.A
| | - Scott E Gold
- Toxicology and Mycotoxin Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Athens, GA 30605, U.S.A
| | - Thomas R Gordon
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, U.S.A
| | - Nancy F Gregory
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Delaware, DE 19716, U.S.A
| | - Marieka Gryzenhout
- Department of Genetics, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | - Josep Guarro
- Unitat de Microbiologia, Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Reus, Spain
| | - Beth K Gugino
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | | | - Kim E Hammond-Kosack
- Department of Biointeractions and Crop Protection, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, United Kingdom
| | - Linda J Harris
- Ottawa Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C6, Canada
| | - Mónika Homa
- MTA-SZTE Fungal Pathogenicity Mechanisms Research Group, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Cheng-Fang Hong
- Department of Plant Pathology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - László Hornok
- Institute of Plant Protection, Szent István University, Gödöllő, Hungary
| | - Jenn-Wen Huang
- Department of Plant Pathology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Macit Ilkit
- Division of Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Çukurova, Sarıçam, Adana, Turkey
| | - Adriaana Jacobs
- Biosystematics Unit, Plant Health and Protection, Agricultural Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Karin Jacobs
- Department of Microbiology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
| | - Cong Jiang
- College of Plant Protection, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Xianyang, People's Republic of China
| | - María Del Mar Jiménez-Gasco
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Seogchan Kang
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Matthew T Kasson
- Division of Plant and Soil Sciences, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, U.S.A
| | - Kemal Kazan
- CSIRO Agriculture and Food, St. Lucia, Australia
| | - John C Kennell
- Biology Department, St. Louis University, St. Louis, MO 63101, U.S.A
| | - Hye-Seon Kim
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - H Corby Kistler
- USDA-ARS Cereal Disease Laboratory, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, U.S.A
| | - Gretchen A Kuldau
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Tomasz Kulik
- Department of Botany and Nature Protection, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Olsztyn, Poland
| | - Oliver Kurzai
- German National Reference Center for Invasive Fungal Infections NRZMyk, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans Knoell Institute, Jena, Germany
| | - Imane Laraba
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Matthew H Laurence
- Australian Institute of Botanical Science, Royal Botanic Garden and Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia
| | - Theresa Lee
- Microbial Safety Team, National Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Rural Development Administration, Wanju, Republic of Korea
| | - Yin-Won Lee
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong-Hwan Lee
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - John F Leslie
- Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, U.S.A
| | - Edward C Y Liew
- Australian Institute of Botanical Science, Royal Botanic Garden and Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia
| | - Lily W Lofton
- Toxicology and Mycotoxin Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Athens, GA 30605, U.S.A
| | - Antonio F Logrieco
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production, Research National Council, Bari, Italy
| | - Manuel S López-Berges
- Departamento de Genética, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | - Alicia G Luque
- Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas, Centro de Referencia de Micología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina
| | - Erik Lysøe
- Division of Biotechnology and Plant Health, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Høgskoleveien, Ås, Norway
| | - Li-Jun Ma
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, U.S.A
| | - Robert E Marra
- Department of Plant Pathology and Ecology, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, CT 06504, U.S.A
| | - Frank N Martin
- Crop Improvement and Protection Research Unit, ARS-USDA, Salinas, CA 93905, U.S.A
| | - Sara R May
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Susan P McCormick
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Chyanna McGee
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Jacques F Meis
- Department of Medical Mycology and Infectious Diseases, Center of Expertise in Mycology, Radboud University Medical Center, Canisius Wilhelmina Hospital, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Quirico Migheli
- Dipartimento di Agraria and Nucleo Ricerca Desertificazione, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - N M I Mohamed Nor
- School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
| | - Michel Monod
- Laboratoire de Mycologie, Service de Dermatologie, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Antonio Moretti
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production, Research National Council, Bari, Italy
| | - Diane Mostert
- Department of Plant Pathology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
| | - Giuseppina Mulè
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production, Research National Council, Bari, Italy
| | | | - Gary P Munkvold
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, U.S.A
| | - Paul Nicholson
- Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Marcio Nucci
- Hospital Universitário, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Kerry O'Donnell
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Matias Pasquali
- Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences, University of Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Ludwig H Pfenning
- Departamento de Fitopatologia, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, Minas Gerais State, Brazil
| | - Anna Prigitano
- Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Robert H Proctor
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Stéphane Ranque
- Institut Hospitalier Universitaire Méditerranée Infection, Aix Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Stephen A Rehner
- Mycology and Nematology Genetic Diversity and Biology Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD 20705, U.S.A
| | - Martijn Rep
- Swammerdam Institute for Life Science, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Gerardo Rodríguez-Alvarado
- Laboratorio de Patología Vegetal, Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias y Forestales, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Tarímbaro, Michoacán 58880, México
| | - Lindy Joy Rose
- Department of Plant Pathology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
| | - Mitchell G Roth
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, U.S.A
| | - Carmen Ruiz-Roldán
- Departamento de Genética, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | - Amgad A Saleh
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Baharuddin Salleh
- School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
| | - Hyunkyu Sang
- Department of Integrative Food, Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea
| | - María Mercedes Scandiani
- Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas, Centro de Referencia de Micología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina
| | - Jonathan Scauflaire
- Centre de Recherche et de Formation Agronomie, Haute Ecole Louvain en Hainaut, Montignies-sur-Sambre, Belgium
| | - David G Schmale
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, U.S.A
| | | | - Adnan Šišić
- Department of Ecological Plant Protection, University of Kassel, Witzenhausen, Germany
| | - Jason A Smith
- School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, U.S.A
| | - Christopher W Smyth
- Department of Biological Sciences, Binghamton University, State University of New York, Binghamton, NY 13902, U.S.A
| | - Hokyoung Son
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Ellie Spahr
- Division of Plant and Soil Sciences, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, U.S.A
| | - Jason E Stajich
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, U.S.A
| | - Emma Steenkamp
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Christian Steinberg
- Agroécologie, AgroSup Dijon, INRAE, University of Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Rajagopal Subramaniam
- Ottawa Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C6, Canada
| | - Haruhisa Suga
- Life Science Research Center, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Brett A Summerell
- Australian Institute of Botanical Science, Royal Botanic Garden and Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia
| | - Antonella Susca
- Institute of Sciences of Food Production, Research National Council, Bari, Italy
| | - Cassandra L Swett
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, U.S.A
| | | | - Terry J Torres-Cruz
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Anna M Tortorano
- Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Martin Urban
- Department of Biointeractions and Crop Protection, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa J Vaillancourt
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, U.S.A
| | - Gary E Vallad
- Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Wimauma, FL 33598, U.S.A
| | - Theo A J van der Lee
- Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Dan Vanderpool
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, U.S.A
| | - Anne D van Diepeningen
- Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Martha M Vaughan
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Eduard Venter
- Department of Botany and Plant Biotechnology, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, South Africa
| | - Marcele Vermeulen
- Department of Microbial Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | - Paul E Verweij
- Department of Medical Mycology and Infectious Diseases, Center of Expertise in Mycology, Radboud University Medical Center, Canisius Wilhelmina Hospital, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Altus Viljoen
- Department of Plant Pathology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
| | - Cees Waalwijk
- Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Emma C Wallace
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A
| | - Grit Walther
- German National Reference Center for Invasive Fungal Infections NRZMyk, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans Knoell Institute, Jena, Germany
| | - Jie Wang
- DOE Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94702
| | - Todd J Ward
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Peoria, IL 61604, U.S.A
| | - Brian L Wickes
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, U.S.A
| | - Nathan P Wiederhold
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, U.S.A
| | - Michael J Wingfield
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Ana K M Wood
- Department of Biointeractions and Crop Protection, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, United Kingdom
| | - Jin-Rong Xu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, U.S.A
| | - Xiao-Bing Yang
- Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | | | - Sung-Hwan Yun
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, Soonchunhyang University, Asan, Republic of Korea
| | - Latiffah Zakaria
- School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
| | - Hao Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Ning Zhang
- Department of Plant Biology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, U.S.A
| | - Sean X Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21287, U.S.A
| | - Xue Zhang
- College of Plant Protection, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Xianyang, People's Republic of China
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49
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Martínez J, Nevado A, Suñén E, Gabriel M, Vélez-Del-Burgo A, Sánchez P, Postigo I. The Aspergillus niger Major Allergen (Asp n 3) DNA-Specific Sequence Is a Reliable Marker to Identify Early Fungal Contamination and Postharvest Damage in Mangifera indica Fruit. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:663323. [PMID: 34262539 PMCID: PMC8273346 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.663323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this work was to study the value of the main allergen Asp n 3 of Aspergillus niger as a molecular marker of allergenicity and pathogenicity with the potential to be used in the identification of A. niger as a contaminant and cause of spoilage of Mangifera indica. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for the amplification of Asp n 3 gene. Two pairs of primers were designed: one for the amplification of the entire sequence and another one for the amplification of the most conserved region of this peroxisomal protein. The presence of A. niger was demonstrated by the early detection of the allergenic protein Asp n 3 coding gene, which could be considered a species-specific marker. The use of primers designed based on the conserved region of the Asp n 3 encoding gene allowed us to identify the presence of the closely related fungal species Aspergillus fumigatus by detecting Asp n 3 homologous protein, which can be cross-reactive. The use of conserved segments of the Asp n 3 gene or its entire sequence allows us to detect phylogenetically closely related species within the Aspergilaceae family or to identify species-specific contaminating fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Martínez
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Ander Nevado
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Ester Suñén
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Marta Gabriel
- INEGI, Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Porto, Portugal
| | - Ainara Vélez-Del-Burgo
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Patricia Sánchez
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Idoia Postigo
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Laboratory of Parasitology and Allergy, Lascaray Research Centre, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
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50
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Mead ME, Steenwyk JL, Silva LP, de Castro PA, Saeed N, Hillmann F, Goldman GH, Rokas A. An evolutionary genomic approach reveals both conserved and species-specific genetic elements related to human disease in closely related Aspergillus fungi. Genetics 2021; 218:6263860. [PMID: 33944921 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyab066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Aspergillosis is an important opportunistic human disease caused by filamentous fungi in the genus Aspergillus. Roughly 70% of infections are caused by Aspergillus fumigatus, with the rest stemming from approximately a dozen other Aspergillus species. Several of these pathogens are closely related to A. fumigatus and belong in the same taxonomic section, section Fumigati. Pathogenic species are frequently most closely related to nonpathogenic ones, suggesting Aspergillus pathogenicity evolved multiple times independently. To understand the repeated evolution of Aspergillus pathogenicity, we performed comparative genomic analyses on 18 strains from 13 species, including 8 species in section Fumigati, which aimed to identify genes, both ones previously connected to virulence as well as ones never before implicated, whose evolution differs between pathogens and nonpathogens. We found that most genes were present in all species, including approximately half of those previously connected to virulence, but a few genes were section- or species-specific. Evolutionary rate analyses identified over 1700 genes whose evolutionary rate differed between pathogens and nonpathogens and dozens of genes whose rates differed between specific pathogens and the rest of the taxa. Functional testing of deletion mutants of 17 transcription factor-encoding genes whose evolution differed between pathogens and nonpathogens identified eight genes that affect either fungal survival in a model of phagocytic killing, host survival in an animal model of fungal disease, or both. These results suggest that the evolution of pathogenicity in Aspergillus involved both conserved and species-specific genetic elements, illustrating how an evolutionary genomic approach informs the study of fungal disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew E Mead
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Jacob L Steenwyk
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Lilian P Silva
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Patrícia A de Castro
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Nauman Saeed
- Junior Research Group Evolution of Microbial Interactions, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans Knöll Institute (HKI), Jena, Germany
| | - Falk Hillmann
- Junior Research Group Evolution of Microbial Interactions, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans Knöll Institute (HKI), Jena, Germany
| | - Gustavo H Goldman
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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