Author
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HOU, ZHANMING - PURDUE UNIVERSITY |
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XUE, CHAOYANG - PURDUE UNIVERSITY |
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Kistler, Harold |
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XU, JIN-RONG - PURDUE UNIVERSITY |
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Submitted to: National Fusarium Head Blight Forum
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 12/20/2001 Publication Date: 12/20/2001 Citation: HOU, Z., XUE, C., KISTLER, H.C., XU, J. MGV1 REGULATES FEMALE FERTILITY AND PLANT INFECTION IN FUSARIUM GRAMINEARUM. NATIONAL FUSARIUM HEAD BLIGHT FORUM PROCEEDINGS. 2001. Abstract. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: The wheat scab disease caused by Fusarium graminearum is prevalent worldwide and can cause severe losses during epidemics. The pathogen over- winters in debris as mycelia or perithecia, and ascospores are believed to be the primary inoculum. To understand molecular mechanisms regulating the infection process of this important pathogen, we isolated a MAP kinase gene eMGV1 from F. graminearum strain PH-1. MGV1 is highly homologous to the MPS1 gene in Magnaporthe grisea that is involved in conidiation, plant penetration, and female fertility. The MGV1 gene appears to be dispensable for conidiation in F. graminearum even though it is required for female fertility during sexual reproduction. Vegetative growth of the mgv1 deletion mutants is normal in liquid media but is reduced when cultured on solid nutrient agar plates. Mycelia of mgv1 deletion mutants are defective in cell wall structures and hypersensitive to cell wall degrading enzymes. In infection assays with flowering wheat heads and corn silks, mgv1 mutant are dramatically reduced in virulence and appear to be defective in spreading in planta. Our data suggest that MGV1 is involved in multiple processes in F. graminearum related with sexual reproduction, plant infection, nutrient sensing, and cell wall integrity. |
