Genome sequence data of MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 idiomorphs from Verticillium dahliae

Authors: ZHANG, YA-DUO - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; ZHANG, YUAN-YUAN - Inner Mongolian Agriculture University; CHEN, JIE-YIN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; HUANG, JIN-QUN - Beijing Genome Institute; ZHANG, JIAN - Inner Mongolian Agriculture University; LIU, LIN - Inner Mongolian Agriculture University; WANG, DAN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; ZHAO, JUN - Inner Mongolian Agriculture University; SONG, JIAN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; LI, RAN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; YANG, LIN - Beijing Genome Institute; KONG, ZHI-QIANG - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; Klosterman, Steven; SUBBARAO, KRISHNA - University Of California; DAI, XIAO-FENG - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences; ZHANG, DAN-DAN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences

Submitted to: Phytopathology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/2/2021
Publication Date: 3/5/2021
Citation: Zhang, Y., Zhang, Y., Chen, J., Huang, J., Zhang, J., Liu, L., Wang, D., Zhao, J., Song, J., Li, R., Yang, L., Kong, Z., Klosterman, S.J., Subbarao, K.V., Dai, X., Zhang, D. 2021. Genome sequence data of MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 idiomorphs from Verticillium dahliae. Phytopathology. https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTO-01-21-0012-A.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTO-01-21-0012-A

Interpretive Summary: The fungus Verticillium dahliae causes Verticillium wilt diseases on numerous crop species, resulting in billions of dollars of annual losses. It remains uncertain whether this fungus can reproduce sexually, as the typical sexual structures observed in related fungi have never been observed in V. dahliae. However, there are two genetic determinants of sexual reproduction, termed mating genes, in separate strains of V. dahliae. In this research, the genomes of two strains of V. dahliae representing the two different mating types, were DNA sequenced and their whole genomes compared. The results revealed differences in the DNA sequences between mating types beyond those found in the two mating type genes and the genomes provide a resource for further investigation of ancient or extant sexual reproduction in V. dahliae.

Technical Abstract: Though V. dahliae is an asexually reproducing fungus, it is considered heterothallic owing to the presence of only one of the two mating-type idiomorphs (MAT1-1 or MAT1-2) in individual isolates. But sexual reproduction has never been observed either in nature or in the laboratory. All of the genomic information in the literature thus far has therefore come from studies on isolates carrying only the MAT1-2 idiomorph. Herein, we sequenced and compared high-quality reference genomes of MAT1-1 strain S011 and MAT1-2 strain S023 obtained from the same sunflower field. The two genomic sequences displayed high synteny, and encoded a similar number of genes, a similarity especially notable among pathogenicity-related genes. Homolog analysis between these two genomes revealed that 80% of encoded genes are highly conserved (95% identity and coverage), but only 20% of the single copy genes were identical. These novel genome resources will support the analysis of the structure and function of the two idiomorphs and provide valuable tools to elucidate the evolution and potential mechanisms of sexual reproduction in V. dahliae.