A Genomic Blueprint of Flax Fungal Parasite Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lini

Abstract

Fusarium wilt of flax is an aggressive disease caused by the soil-borne fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lini. It is a challenging pathogen presenting a constant threat to flax production industry worldwide. Previously, we reported chromosome-level assemblies of 5 highly pathogenic F. oxysporum f. sp. lini strains. We sought to characterize the genomic architecture of the fungus and outline evolutionary mechanisms shaping the pathogen genome. Here, we reveal the complex multi-compartmentalized genome organization and uncover its diverse evolutionary dynamics, which boosts genetic diversity and facilitates host adaptation. In addition, our results suggest that host of functions implicated in the life cycle of mobile genetic elements are main contributors to dissimilarity between proteomes of different Fusaria. Finally, our experiments demonstrate that mobile genetics elements are expressed in planta upon infection, alluding to their role in pathogenicity. On the whole, these results pave the way for further in-depth studies of evolutionary forces shaping the host–pathogen interaction.

Overview and Management of the Most Common Eukaryotic Diseases of Flax (Linum usitatissimum)

“…lini can differ largely in aggressiveness. The origin of the pathogen is polyphyletic, and isolates from different parts of the world cluster in at least four distinct clonal lineages [62,63]. The most effective way to manage the disease is the use of resistant cultivars.…”

Pangenome construction and analyses for a population of flax parasitic fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lini

“…of F. oxysporum have very strict specificity to their host-plants, that is also determined by differences in genomes, and more than 200 of special forms are described by today. Earlier we reported about sequencing and analysis of 5 Foli genomes with chromosome-level assemblies and described that karyotype of Foli divides at least on two parts: conserved chromosomes composed on sequences with shared synteny to other special forms, and variable chromosomes that lack of such synteny [3,4]. Here we report the pangenome construction and characteristics for F. oxysporum f.sp.…”

Pangenomics of flax fungal parasite Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lini

“…To date, around 100 forms of Fusarium oxysporum ( Dean et al., 2012 ) have been identified, with Fusarium oxysporum f. sp lini ( Folini ) being one of them. The strains of Folini have been separated into several clades, implying that its pathogenicity is of a clonal origin ( Samsonova et al., 2021 ).…”