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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Ithaca, New York » Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture & Health » Emerging Pests and Pathogens Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #419711
Research Project: Management and Biology of Arthropod Pests and Arthropod-borne Plant Pathogens

Location: Emerging Pests and Pathogens Research

Title: Genomic Architecture of Fungal Metabolism Involved in Host and Ecological Specialization

Author
item RODRIGO, OLARTE - University Of Minnesota
item MALVICK, DEAN - University Of Minnesota
item Bushley, Kathryn

Submitted to: Fungal Genetics Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/2/2024
Publication Date: 3/12/2024
Citation: Rodrigo, O., Malvick, D.K., Bushley, K.E. 2024. Genomic Architecture of Fungal Metabolism Involved in Host and Ecological Specialization. Fungal Genetics Conference. 32nd Fungal Genetics Conference, March 12-17,2024.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: In fungi, host and ecological specialization is shaped both by the products of secondary metabolism (i.e., host-selective toxins) and those from primary metabolism involved in utilizing specific classes of host carbohydrates or proteins. Secondary metabolite genes synthesizing toxins are among the fastest evolving genes classes in fungi and are often localized to unstable regions of the genome such as subtelomeres and other transposable element (TE) and repeat rich regions. They respond to selective pressures imposed by either the host or the environment, enabling fungi to rapidly adapt to changing conditions. Additionally, secondary metabolite genes, as well as genes involved in virulence, are often found clustered within fungal genomes, which may facilitate efficient epigenetic regulation. Genes involved in ecological adaptation may also be localized to small “accessory” chromosomes, which like bacterial pathogenicity plasmids, may facilitate their horizontal transfer among fungi. Yet the mechanisms by which these genes and clusters evolve remain elusive. Using a dataset of six nearly chromosomal-scale assemblies of the insect pathogenic fungus Tolypocladium inflatum, as well as examples from several plant pathogenic fungi, we examine evidence for genetic processes such as transposition, inversions, microdeletions, and homologous recombination or gene conversion on the ends of chromosomes for driving the diversification of metabolite clusters and gene families involved in host and ecological adaptation. In particular, the role of transposable elements in rearrangement or mobilization of clusters within fungal genomes is addressed. We also examine how these types of structural rearrangements impact the expression of metabolite clusters or lead to loss of function through pseudogenization mutations that may also serve as the basis for host and ecological adaptation.