Morphological changes are critical for host colonisation in plant pathogenic fungi. These changes occur at specific stages of their pathogenic cycle in response to environmental signals and are mediated by transcription factors, which act as master regulators. Histone deacetylases (HDACs) play crucial roles in regulating gene expression, for example by locally modulating the accessibility of ch...

Here, we identified a new member of the Fizzy-related family of APC activators, Cru1, which is required for virulence in the corn smut fungus Ustilago maydis. We show that Cru1 promotes the degradation of B-type cyclins in U. maydis. Cells deficient in the Cru1 protein show defects in cell size, adaptation to nutritional conditions and cell separation. We propose that the phenotypes observed ar...

abstract common root rot induced by bipolaris sorokiniana, is one of the most important diseases of wheat. chemical control of this disease is difficult because of it is a soil-born pathogen, so that, application of other methods is useful to reduce disease level especially resistance cultivars. in this research, were examined reaction of some wheat cultivars and lines against common root rot i...

6-pentyl-α-pyrone (6-PP) is a powerful Magnaporthiopsis maydis antifungal compound, recently discovered when the potent growth medium of Trichoderma asperellum was analyzed. Despite its high potential in plate assay, it not inspected for plant treatment prevention. Late wilt disease, caused by fungus M. maydis, threatens commercial maize production high-risk areas. Thus, search control options ...

In the phytopathogenic fungus Ustilago maydis, fusion of haploid cells is a prerequisite for infection. This process is controlled by a pheromone-receptor system. The receptors belong to the seven-transmembrane class that are coupled to heterotrimeric G proteins. Of four Galpha subunits in U. maydis, only gpa3 has a function during mating and cyclic AMP (cAMP) signaling. Activation of the cAMP ...

Smut fungi are plant pathogens mostly parasitizing wild species of grasses as well as domesticated cereal crops. Genome analysis of several smut fungi including Ustilago maydis revealed a singular clustered organization of genes encoding secreted effectors. In U. maydis, many of these clusters have a role in virulence. Reconstructing the evolutionary history of clusters of effector genes is dif...

Pseudozyma flocculosa is related to the model plant pathogen Ustilago maydis yet is not a phytopathogen but rather a biocontrol agent of powdery mildews; this relationship makes it unique for the study of the evolution of plant pathogenicity factors. The P. flocculosa genome of ~23 Mb includes 6877 predicted protein coding genes. Genome features, including hallmarks of pathogenicity, are very s...

The a2 mating-type-locus gene lga2 of the basidiomycete Ustilago maydis encodes a mitochondrial protein that interferes with mitochondrial morphology and integrity, and that plays a role in uniparental inheritance of mitochondrial DNA. To address the mode of action of Lga2, we investigated its Dnm1 (a dynamin-related protein)-dependent effects. Here, we demonstrate that Dnm1 functions as a mito...

The basidiomycete Ustilago maydis causes smut disease in maize. Colonization of the host plant is initiated by direct penetration of cuticle and cell wall of maize epidermis cells. The invading hyphae are surrounded by the plant plasma membrane and proliferate within the plant tissue. We identified a novel secreted protein, termed Pep1, that is essential for penetration. Disruption mutants of p...