Positional cues localized to distinct cell domains are critical for the generation of cell polarity and cell morphogenesis. These cues lead to assembly of protein complexes that organize the cytoskeleton resulting in delivery of vesicles to sites of polarized growth. Tea4, an SH3 domain protein, was first identified in fission yeast, and is a critical determinant of the axis of polarized growth, a role conserved among ascomycete fungi. Ustilago maydis is a badiomycete fungus that exhibits a yeast-like form that is nonpathogenic and a filamentous form that is pathogenic on maize and teozintle. We are interested in understanding how positional cues contribute to generation and maintenance of these two forms, and their role in pathogenicity. We identified a homologue of fission yeast tea4 in a genetic screen for mutants with altered colony and cell morphology and present here analysis of Tea4 for the first time in a basidiomycete fungus. We demonstrate that Tea4 is an important positional marker for polarized growth and septum location in both forms. We uncover roles for Tea4 in maintenance of cell and neck width, cell separation, and cell wall deposition in the yeast-like form, and in growth rate, formation of retraction septa, growth reversal, and inhibition of budding in the filamentous form. We show that Tea4∷GFP localizes to sites of polarized or potential polarized growth in both forms, as observed in ascomycete fungi. We demonstrate an essential role of Tea4 in pathogencity in the absence of cell fusion. Basidiomycete and ascomycete Tea4 homologues share SH3 and Glc7 domains. Tea4 in basidiomycetes has additional domains, which has led us to hypothesize that Tea4 has novel functions in this group of fungi.

Ustilago maydis is a Basidiomycete fungus that exhibits a yeast-like nonpathogenic form and a dikaryotic filamentous pathogenic form. Generation of these two forms is controlled by two mating type loci, a and b. The fungus undergoes additional morphological transitions in the plant that result in formation of a third cell type, the teliospore. The fuz1 gene is necessary for this developmental program. Here we report cloning and sequencing of fuz1 and show that it contains an open reading frame with coding capacity for a protein of 1421 amino acids. The Fuz1 protein belongs to the family of MYND Zn finger domain proteins. We generate a null mutation in strains of opposite mating type and show that fuz1 is necessary for conjugation tube formation, a morphological transition that occurs in response to pheromones. We generate fuz1 − diploid strains heterozygous at a and b and show that fuz1 is also necessary for postfusion events (maintenance of filamentous growth). We also demonstrate that fuz1 is necessary for cell morphogenesis of the yeast-like cell: normal cell length, location and number of septa, cell separation and constriction of the neck region. Fuz1 is also required for cell wall integrity and to prevent secretion of a dark pigment. We propose that the MYND domain may interact with different proteins to regulate cell morphogenesis.

Ustilago maydis is a Basidiomycete fungus that exhibits a yeast-like nonpathogenic form and a dikaryotic filamentous pathogenic form. Generation of these two forms is controlled by two mating type loci, a and b. The fungus undergoes additional morphological transitions in the plant that result in formation of a third cell type, the teliospore. The fuz1 gene is necessary for this developmental program. Here we report cloning and sequencing of fuz1 and show that it contains an open reading frame with coding capacity for a protein of 1421 amino acids. The Fuz1 protein belongs to the family of MYND Zn finger domain proteins. We generate a null mutation in strains of opposite mating type and show that fuz1 is necessary for conjugation tube formation, a morphological transition that occurs in response to pheromones. We generate fuz1- diploid strains heterozygous at a and b and show that fuz1 is also necessary for postfusion events (maintenance of filamentous growth). We also demonstrate that fuz1 is necessary for cell morphogenesis of the yeast-like cell: normal cell length, location and number of septa, cell separation and constriction of the neck region. Fuz1 is also required for cell wall integrity and to prevent secretion of a dark pigment. We propose that the MYND domain may interact with different proteins to regulate cell morphogenesis.