The molecular mechanisms of plant recognition, colonization, and nutrient exchange between diazotrophic endophytes and plants are scarcely known. Herbaspirillum seropedicae is an endophytic bacterium capable of colonizing intercellular spaces of grasses such as rice and sugar cane. The genome of H. seropedicae strain SmR1 was sequenced and annotated by The Paraná State Genome Programme—GENOPAR. The genome is composed of a circular chromosome of 5,513,887 bp and contains a total of 4,804 genes. The genome sequence revealed that H. seropedicae is a highly versatile microorganism with capacity to metabolize a wide range of carbon and nitrogen sources and with possession of four distinct terminal oxidases. The genome contains a multitude of protein secretion systems, including type I, type II, type III, type V, and type VI secretion systems, and type IV pili, suggesting a high potential to interact with host plants. H. seropedicae is able to synthesize indole acetic acid as reflected by the four IAA biosynthetic pathways present. A gene coding for ACC deaminase, which may be involved in modulating the associated plant ethylene-signaling pathway, is also present. Genes for hemagglutinins/hemolysins/adhesins were found and may play a role in plant cell surface adhesion. These features may endow H. seropedicae with the ability to establish an endophytic life-style in a large number of plant species.

BackgroundSelf-complementary RNA transcripts form a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) that triggers a sequence-specific mRNA degradation, in a process known as RNA interference (RNAi), leading to gene silencing. In vascular plants, RNAi molecules trafficking occur between cells and systemically throughout the plant. RNAi signals can spread systemically throughout a plant, even across graft junctions from transgenic to non-transgenic stocks. There is also a great interest in applying RNAi to pathogenic fungi. Specific inhibition of gene expression by RNAi has been shown to be suitable for a multitude of phytopathogenic filamentous fungi. However, double-stranded (ds)RNA/small interfering (si)RNA silencing effect has not been observed in vivo.ResultsThis study demonstrates for the first time the in vivo interference phenomenon in the pathogenic fungus Fusarium verticillioides, in which expression of an individual fungal transgene was specifically abolished by inoculating mycelial cells in transgenic tobacco plants engineered to express siRNAs from a dsRNA corresponding to the particular transgene.ConclusionThe results provide a powerful tool for further studies on molecular plant-microbe and symbiotic interactions. From a biotechnological perspective, silencing of fungal genes by generating siRNAs in the host provides a novel strategy for the development of broad fungi-resistance strategies in plants and other organisms.

The impala transposon of Fusarium oxysporum is an active element. We demonstrated that the imp160 copy, transposed into the gene encoding nitrate reductase, is an autonomous element, since it excises from this gene and reinserts at a new genomic position in backgrounds free of active elements. An element in which the transposase gene was replaced by a hygromycin B resistance gene was used (1) to demonstrate the absence of endogenous transposase in several F. oxysporum strains and (2) to check the ability of different genomic copies of impala to transactivate this defective element. This two-component system allowed the identification of autonomous elements in two impala subfamilies and revealed that transactivation can occur between highly divergent elements. We also demonstrate that the autonomous copy transposes in a closely related species complex, F. moniliforme, in a fashion similar to that observed in F. oxysporium. The ability of impala to function as a two-component system and to transpose in a heterologous host promises further advances in our understanding of the factors that modulate transposition efficiency and demonstrates the potential of impala as a means of establishing a transposon tagging system for a wide range of fungal species.

Endophytic fungi, mostly belonging to the Ascomycota, are found in the intercellular spaces of the aerial plant parts, particularly in leaf sheaths, sometimes even within the bark and root system without inducing any visual symptoms of their presence. These fungi appear to have a capacity to produce a wide range of enzymes and secondary metabolites exhibiting a variety of biological activities. However, they have been only barely exploited as sources of enzymes of industrial interest. This review emphasizes the suitability and possible advantages of including the endophytic fungi in the screening of new enzyme producing organisms as well as in studies aiming to optimize the production of enzymes through well-known culture processes. Apparently endophytic fungi possess the two types of extracellular enzymatic systems necessary to degrade the vegetal biomass: (1) the hydrolytic system responsible for polysaccharide degradation consisting mainly in xylanases and cellulases; and (2) the unique oxidative ligninolytic system, which degrades lignin and opens phenyl rings, comprises mainly laccases, ligninases and peroxidases. The obvious ability of endophytic fungi to degrade the complex structure of lignocellulose makes them useful in the exploration of the lignocellulosic biomass for the production of fuel ethanol and other value-added commodity chemicals. In addition to this, endophytic fungi may become new sources of industrially useful enzymes such as lipases, amylases and proteases.

Endophytic fungi inhabit vegetable tissues or organs, without causing them any harm. Endophytes can co-evolve with plant hosts and possess species-specifi c interactions. They can protect the plant from insect attacks and diseases, and are also able to produce substances of biotechnological interest. In folk medicine, the bark, roots and fruits of Sapindus saponaria is used to produce substances with anxiolytic, astringent, diuretic and expectorant properties, as well as tonics, blood depuratives and cough medicine. This study evaluated the diversity of endophytic fungi present in the leaves of S. saponaria L. and observed the colonization of host plants by endophytes, using light and scanning electron microscopy. We verifi ed that these fungi are found in intercellular and intracellular spaces. The genera of some isolates of S. saponaria were identifi ed mainly by sequencing of ITS region of rDNA and, when possible, also by their microscopic features, as follows: Cochliobolus, Alternaria, Curvularia, Phomopsis, Diaporthe and Phoma. Phylogenetic analysis showed the existence of genetic variability of the genera Phomopsis and Diaporthe and interspecifi c variation among the Curvularia, Alternaria and Phoma, belonging to family Pleosporaceae.