Abstract
Peroxisomes are important organelles that have diverse metabolic functions and participate in the pathogenicity of fungal pathogens. Previous studies indicate that most functions of peroxisomes are dependent on peroxisomal matrix proteins, which are delivered from the cytoplasm into peroxisomes by peroxisomal protein importers. In this study, the roles of peroxisomal protein importer AflPex5 were investigated in Aspergillus flavus with the application of gene disruption. AflPex5 deletion mutants failed to localize the fluorescently fused peroxisomal targeting signal 1 (PTS1) proteins to peroxisomes. Deletion of AflPex5 caused defects in sporulation, sclerotial formation, aflatoxin biosynthesis, stress response, and plant infection. Moreover, AflPex5 null mutants exhibited a significant defect in carbon metabolism and oxidants’ clearance. These results indicate that the PTS1 pathway mediated by AflPex5 serves as an important role in the development, metabolism, and pathogenesis of A. flavus.
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Acknowledgements
Funding was provided for this research from the grants of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31400100 and No. 31172297), the Key Project of Science and Technology in Fujian Province (No. 2014Y0047), and the Foundation of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University for Distinguished Young Scholars (No. xjq201505). We especially thank Prof. Perng Kuang Chang (Southern Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, New Orleans, USA) for his kindness in providing the strains.
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Zhang, F., Geng, L., Huang, L. et al. Contribution of peroxisomal protein importer AflPex5 to development and pathogenesis in the fungus Aspergillus flavus. Curr Genet 64, 1335–1348 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00294-018-0851-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00294-018-0851-7