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- Title
Comparative Genome Analysis Reveals Adaptation to the Ectophytic Lifestyle of Sooty Blotch and Flyspeck Fungi.
- Authors
Rong Zhang; Guangyu Sun; Chao Xu; Gleason, Mark L.
- Abstract
Sootyblotchandflyspeck (SBFS) fungi are adistinctive group of plantpathogenswhich, althoughphylogenetically diverse, occupy an exclusively surface-dwelling niche. They cause economic losses by superficially blemishing the fruit of several tree crops, principally apple, in moist temperate regions worldwide. In this study, we performed genome-wide comparative analyses separately within three pairs of species of ascomycete pathogens; each pair contained an SBFS species aswell as a closely related but plant-penetrating parasite (PPP) species. Our results showed that all three of the SBFS pathogens had significantly smaller genome sizes, gene numbers and repeat ratios than their counterpart PPPs. The pathogenicity-related genes encoding MFS transporters, secreted proteins (mainly effectors and peptidases), plant cell wall degrading enzymes, and secondary metabolism enzymes were alsodrastically reducedinthe SBFS fungi comparedwith their PPP relatives. We hypothesize that the above differences in genome composition are due largely to different levelsof acquisition, loss, expansion, and contraction of gene families and emergence of or phangenes. Furthermore, results suggested that horizontal gene transfer may have played a role, although limited, in the divergent evolutionary paths of SBFS pathogens and PPPs; repeat-induced point mutation could have inhibited the propagation of transposable elements and expansion of gene families in the SBFS group, given that this mechanism is stronger in the SBFS fungi than in their PPP relatives. These results substantially broaden understanding of evolutionary mechanisms of adaptation of fungi to the epicuticular niche of plants.
- Subjects
PHYTOPATHOGENIC microorganisms; BIOLOGICAL adaptation; COMPARATIVE genomics; FUNGI; TREE crops
- Publication
Genome Biology & Evolution, 2017, Vol 9, Issue 11, p3137
- ISSN
1759-6653
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1093/gbe/evx229