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A novel polyketide biosynthesis gene cluster is involved in fruiting body morphogenesis in the filamentous fungi Sordaria macrospora and Neurospora crassa

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Abstract

During fungal fruiting body development, hyphae aggregate to form multicellular structures that protect and disperse the sexual spores. Analysis of microarray data revealed a gene cluster strongly upregulated during fruiting body development in the ascomycete Sordaria macrospora. Real time PCR analysis showed that the genes from the orthologous cluster in Neurospora crassa are also upregulated during development. The cluster encodes putative polyketide biosynthesis enzymes, including a reducing polyketide synthase. Analysis of knockout strains of a predicted dehydrogenase gene from the cluster showed that mutants in N. crassa and S. macrospora are delayed in fruiting body formation. In addition to the upregulated cluster, the N. crassa genome comprises another cluster containing a polyketide synthase gene, and five additional reducing polyketide synthase (rpks) genes that are not part of clusters. To study the role of these genes in sexual development, expression of the predicted rpks genes in S. macrospora (five genes) and N. crassa (six genes) was analyzed; all but one are upregulated during sexual development. Analysis of knockout strains for the N. crassa rpks genes showed that one of them is essential for fruiting body formation. These data indicate that polyketides produced by RPKSs are involved in sexual development in filamentous ascomycetes.

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Ulrich Kück for his generous support, Swenja Ellßel, Gisela Isowitz, Silke Nimtz, and Susanne Schlewinski for excellent technical assistance, and Sandra Frank for help with some of the experiments. This study was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Sonderforschungsbereich 480 project A1 and grant NO 407/2-1).

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  1. Lehrstuhl für Allgemeine und Molekulare Botanik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, ND 6/165, Universitätsstr. 150, 44780, Bochum, Germany

    Minou Nowrousian

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Correspondence to Minou Nowrousian.

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Communicated by G. Braus.

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Nowrousian, M. A novel polyketide biosynthesis gene cluster is involved in fruiting body morphogenesis in the filamentous fungi Sordaria macrospora and Neurospora crassa . Curr Genet 55, 185–198 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00294-009-0236-z

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