Cyclooxygenases and lipoxygenases are used by the fungus Podospora anserina to repel nematodes

Oxylipins are secondary messengers used universally in the living world for communication and defense. The paradigm is that they are produced enzymatically for the eicosanoids and non-enzymatically for the isoprostanoids. They are supposed to be degraded into volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and to participate in aroma production. Some such chemicals composed of eight carbons are also envisoned as alternatives to fossil fuels. In fungi, oxylipins have been mostly studied in Aspergilli and shown to be involved in signalling asexual versus sexual development, mycotoxin production and interaction with the host for pathogenic species. Through targeted gene deletions of genes encoding oxylipin-producing enzymes and chemical analysis of oxylipins and volatile organic compounds, we show that in the distantly-related ascomycete Podospora anserina, isoprostanoids are likely produced enzymatically. We show the disappearance in the mutants lacking lipoxygenases and cyclooxygenases of the production of 10-hydroxy-octadecadienoic acid and that of 1-octen-3-ol, a common volatile compound. Importantly, this was correlated with the inability of the mutants to repel nematodes as efficiently as the wild type. Overall, our data show that in this fungus, oxylipins are not involved in signalling development but may rather be used directly or as precursors in the production of odors against potential agressors.

SIGNIFICANCE

We analyzse the role in inter-kingdom communication of lipoxygenase (lox) and cyclooxygenase (cox) genes in the model fungus Podospora anserina. Through chemical analysis we define the oxylipins and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)produce by wild type and mutants for cox and lox genes, We show that the COX and LOX genes are required for the production of some eight carbon VOCs. We show that COX and LOX genes are involved in the production of chemicals repelling nematodes. This role is very different from the ones previously evidenced in other fungi.

IDC2 and IDC3, two genes involved in cell non-autonomous signaling of fruiting body development in the model fungus Podospora anserina

Filamentous ascomycetes produce complex multicellular structures during sexual reproduction. Little is known about the genetic pathways enabling the construction of such structures. Here, with a combination of classical and reverse genetic methods, as well as genetic mosaic and graft analyses, we identify and provide evidence for key roles for two genes during the formation of perithecia, the sexual fruiting bodies, of the filamentous fungus Podospora anserina. Data indicate that the proteins coded by these two genes function cell-non-autonomously and that their activity depends upon conserved cysteines, making them good candidate for being involved in the transmission of a reactive oxygen species (ROS) signal generated by the PaNox1 NADPH oxidase inside the maturing fruiting body towards the PaMpk1 MAP kinase, which is located inside the underlying mycelium, in which nutrients are stored. These data provide important new insights to our understanding of how fungi build multicellular structures.

The PaPsr1 and PaWhi2 genes are members of the regulatory network that connect stationary phase to mycelium differentiation and reproduction in Podospora anserina

In filamentous fungi, entrance into stationary phase is complex as it is accompanied by several differentiation and developmental processes, including the synthesis of pigments, aerial hyphae, anastomoses and sporophores. The regulatory networks that control these processes are still incompletely known. The analysis of the "Impaired in the development of Crippled Growth (IDC)" mutants of the model filamentous ascomycete Podospora anserina has already yielded important information regarding the pathway regulating entrance into stationary phase. Here, the genes affected in two additional IDC mutants are identified as orthologues of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae WHI2 and PSR1 genes, known to regulate stationary phase in this yeast, arguing for a conserved role of these proteins throughout the evolution of ascomycetes.