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Molecular Plant Pathology May 2023Ustilago maydis is a pathogenic fungus that causes corn smut. Because of its easy cultivation and genetic transformation, U. maydis has become an important... (Review)
Review
Ustilago maydis is a pathogenic fungus that causes corn smut. Because of its easy cultivation and genetic transformation, U. maydis has become an important model organism for plant-pathogenic basidiomycetes. U. maydis is able to infect maize by producing effectors and secreted proteins as well as surfactant-like metabolites. In addition, the production of melanin and iron carriers is also associated with its pathogenicity. Here, advances in our understanding of the pathogenicity of U. maydis, the metabolites involved in the pathogenic process, and the biosynthesis of these metabolites, are reviewed and discussed. This summary will provide new insights into the pathogenicity of U. maydis and the functions of associated metabolites, as well as new clues for deciphering the biosynthesis of metabolites.
Topics: Plant Diseases; Ustilago; Basidiomycota; Virulence; Zea mays; Fungal Proteins
PubMed: 36808861
DOI: 10.1111/mpp.13307 -
Current Opinion in Biotechnology Apr 2020Some of the oldest and most established industrial biotechnology processes involve the fungal production of organic acids. In these fungi, the transport of metabolites... (Review)
Review
Some of the oldest and most established industrial biotechnology processes involve the fungal production of organic acids. In these fungi, the transport of metabolites between cellular compartments, and their secretion, is a major factor. In this review we exemplify the importance of both mitochondrial and plasma membrane transporters in the case of itaconic acid production in two very different fungal systems, Aspergillus and Ustilago. Homologous and heterologous overexpression of both types of transporters, and biochemical analysis of mitochondrial transporter function, show that these two fungi produce the same compound through very different pathways. The way these fungi respond to itaconate stress, especially at low pH, also differs, although this is still an open field which clearly needs additional research.
Topics: Aspergillus; Fungal Proteins; Fungi; Succinates; Ustilago
PubMed: 31689647
DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2019.09.014 -
F1000Research 2018Biotrophic fungal pathogens of plants must sense and adapt to the host environment to complete their life cycles. Recent transcriptome studies of the infection of maize... (Review)
Review
Biotrophic fungal pathogens of plants must sense and adapt to the host environment to complete their life cycles. Recent transcriptome studies of the infection of maize by the biotrophic pathogen are providing molecular insights into an ordered program of changes in gene expression and the deployment of effectors as well as key features of nutrient acquisition. In particular, the transcriptome data provide a deeper appreciation of the complexity of the transcription factor network that controls the biotrophic program of invasion, proliferation, and sporulation. Additionally, transcriptome analysis during tumor formation, a key late stage in the life cycle, revealed features of the remodeling of host and pathogen metabolism that may support the formation of tremendous numbers of spores. Transcriptome studies are also appearing for other smut species during interactions with their hosts, thereby providing opportunities for comparative approaches to understand biotrophic adaptation.
Topics: Carcinogenesis; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Plant Diseases; Ustilago; Zea mays
PubMed: 30519451
DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.16404.1 -
Fungal Genetics and Biology : FG & B Dec 2016Peroxisomes (POs) are an essential part of the fungal cell's inventory. They are involved in cellular lipid homeostasis, reactive oxygen metabolism and in the synthesis... (Review)
Review
Peroxisomes (POs) are an essential part of the fungal cell's inventory. They are involved in cellular lipid homeostasis, reactive oxygen metabolism and in the synthesis of secondary metabolites. These functions are thought to require frequent organelle-organelle interactions and the even-distribution of POs in fungal hypha. Recent work in the basidiomycete Ustilago maydis and the ascomycete Aspergillus nidulans reveals a crucial role of early endosomes (EEs) in the dynamic behavior of POs required for their cellular distribution and interaction. This article summarizes the main findings, which provided unexpected insight into the mechanism by which fungal cells organize themselves.
Topics: Aspergillus nidulans; Endosomes; Fungi; Homeostasis; Peroxisomes; Reactive Oxygen Species; Ustilago
PubMed: 27825929
DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2016.10.006 -
Fungal Genetics and Biology : FG & B Jun 2017Mathematical modelling in cellular systems aims to describe biological processes in a quantitative manner. Most accurate modelling is based on robust experimental data.... (Review)
Review
Mathematical modelling in cellular systems aims to describe biological processes in a quantitative manner. Most accurate modelling is based on robust experimental data. Here we review recent progress in the theoretical description of motor behaviour, early endosome motility, ribosome distribution and peroxisome transport in the fungal model system Ustilago maydis and illustrate the power of modelling in our quest to understand molecular details and cellular roles of membrane trafficking in filamentous fungi.
Topics: Biological Transport; Cell Membrane; Endosomes; Hyphae; Microtubules; Models, Theoretical; Organelles; Peroxisomes; Ustilago
PubMed: 28351675
DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2017.03.006 -
The Plant Cell Jul 2022
Topics: Fungal Proteins; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Plant Diseases; Ustilago; Zea mays
PubMed: 35604369
DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koac109 -
Current Genetics Dec 2017Candida albicans, a common commensal fungus, can cause disease in immunocompromised hosts ranging from mild mucosal infections to severe bloodstream infections with high... (Review)
Review
Candida albicans, a common commensal fungus, can cause disease in immunocompromised hosts ranging from mild mucosal infections to severe bloodstream infections with high mortality rates. The ability of C. albicans cells to switch between a budding yeast form and an elongated hyphal form is linked to pathogenicity in animal models. Hyphal-specific proteins such as cell-surface adhesins and secreted hydrolases facilitate tissue invasion and host cell damage, but the specific mechanisms leading to asymmetric protein localization in hyphae remain poorly understood. In many eukaryotes, directional cytoplasmic transport of messenger RNAs that encode asymmetrically localized proteins allows efficient local translation at the site of protein function. Over the past two decades, detailed mechanisms for polarized mRNA transport have been elucidated in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the filamentous fungus Ustilago maydis. This review highlights recent studies of RNA-binding proteins in C. albicans that have revealed intriguing similarities to and differences from known fungal mRNA transport systems. I also discuss outstanding questions that will need to be answered to reach an in-depth understanding of C. albicans mRNA transport mechanisms and the roles of asymmetric mRNA localization in polarized growth, hyphal function, and virulence of this opportunistic pathogen.
Topics: Animals; Candida albicans; Candidiasis; Fungal Proteins; Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; Humans; Hyphae; Immunocompromised Host; Opportunistic Infections; RNA Transport; RNA, Fungal; RNA, Messenger; RNA-Binding Proteins; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Ustilago; Virulence
PubMed: 28512683
DOI: 10.1007/s00294-017-0707-6 -
Fungal Genetics and Biology : FG & B Nov 2019From the evening of March 12, till dinner on March 13, 2017, the 1st International Ustilago/Smut Convergence took place as a workshop prior to the start of the 29th... (Review)
Review
From the evening of March 12, till dinner on March 13, 2017, the 1st International Ustilago/Smut Convergence took place as a workshop prior to the start of the 29th Fungal Genetics Conference, in Asilomar, California. The overall goals of the meeting were to expand the smut model systems being used and to expand participation by the next generations of scientists with these fungi. These goals were implemented through a combination of emphasis on student and post-doc presentations, mentoring of such individuals, and active recruitment of participation by groups under-represented at such meetings in recent years in the US, especially those from Latin America and other Spanish-speaking countries. Work was presented at the first workshop on U. maydis, Sporosorium reilianum, Microbotryum violaceum, U. esculenta, and Thecaphora thlaspeos. Students and post-doctoral researchers were encouraged to present their "just-in-time," as-yet-unpublished data, in a safe environment, with the understanding of those attending the meeting that this early access was a privilege not to be taken advantage of. The result was lively and constructive discussion, including a variety of presentations by these young scientists on putative and characterized smut effector proteins, clearly at the forefront of such research, even considering the advances presented later that week at the Fungal Genetics Conference. This review also briefly compares the first meeting with the events of the recent 2nd International Ustilago/Smut Convergence (March 11-12, 2019), which ended with a tribute to Prof. Dr. Regine Kahmann, in honor of her career, and especially for her contributions to the field of smut genetics.
Topics: California; Congresses as Topic; Genetics, Microbial; Genome, Fungal; Plant Diseases; Ustilago
PubMed: 31394176
DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2019.103260 -
Chromosome Research : An International... Dec 2013RNAi is conserved and has been studied in a broad cross-section of the fungal kingdom, including Neurospora crassa, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Cryptococcus neoformans,... (Review)
Review
RNAi is conserved and has been studied in a broad cross-section of the fungal kingdom, including Neurospora crassa, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Cryptococcus neoformans, and Mucor circinelloides. And yet well known species, including the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the plant pathogen Ustilago maydis, have lost RNAi, providing insights and opportunities to illuminate benefits conferred both by the presence of RNAi and its loss. Some of the earliest studies of RNAi were conducted in Neurospora, contemporaneously with the elucidation of RNAi in Caenorhabditis elegans. RNAi is a key epigenetic mechanism for maintaining genomic stability and integrity, as well as to defend against viruses, and given its ubiquity was likely present in the last eukaryotic common ancestor. In this review, we describe the diversity of RNAi mechanisms found in the fungi, highlighting recent work in Neurospora, S. pombe, and Cryptococcus. Finally, we consider frequent, independent losses of RNAi in diverse fungal lineages and both review and speculate on evolutionary forces that may drive the losses or result therefrom.
Topics: Biological Evolution; Cryptococcus neoformans; Neurospora crassa; Phylogeny; Plants; RNA Interference; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Schizosaccharomyces; Ustilago
PubMed: 24173579
DOI: 10.1007/s10577-013-9388-2 -
RNA Biology Apr 2019In this communication, we report the adaptation of the CRISPR-Cas9 technology in Ustilago trichophora prototrophic wild-type isolate obtained from its natural host...
In this communication, we report the adaptation of the CRISPR-Cas9 technology in Ustilago trichophora prototrophic wild-type isolate obtained from its natural host Echinochloa crus-galli. The established CRISPR vector and method enable a rapid and marker-free introduction of Cas9-induced non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) dependent mutation at the targeted gene. Moreover, the method allows a specific modification of the chromosomal DNA sequence by Cas9-induced homologous recombination using short DNA repair templates. The results demonstrate the applicability of the CRISPR-Cas9 technology in U. trichophora for both gene knock-out by the NHEJ pathway and specific gene modification by templated genome editing, paving the way for rapid metabolic engineering of this Ustilago species for industrial applications.
Topics: Base Sequence; CRISPR-Associated Protein 9; CRISPR-Cas Systems; Chromosomes, Fungal; Gene Editing; Genetic Markers; Genome, Fungal; Homologous Recombination; Ustilago
PubMed: 29996713
DOI: 10.1080/15476286.2018.1493329