Beginning to understand the role of sugar carriers in Colletotrichum lindemuthianum: the function of the gene mfs1

Abstract

Fungi of the Colletotrichum genus are among the most prominent phytopathogens that cause diseases with a considerable economic impact, such as anthracnose. The hemibiotrophic fungus Colletotrichum lindemuthianum (teleomorph Glomerella cingulata f. sp. phaseoli) is the causal agent of the anthracnose of the common bean; and similarly to other phytopathogens, it uses multiple strategies to gain access to different carbon sources from its host. In this study, we examine mfs1, a newly identified C. lindemuthianum hexose transporter. The mfs1 gene is expressed only during the necrotrophic phase of the fungus' interaction within the plant and allows it to utilize the available sugars during this phase. The deletion of mfs1 gene resulted in differential growth of the fungus in a medium that contained glucose, mannose or fructose as the only carbon source. This study is the first to describe a hexose transporter in the hemibiotrophic pathogen C. lindemuthianum and to demonstrate the central role of this protein in capturing carbon sources during the necrotrophic development of the plant/pathogen interaction.

Transcriptome Profiling of the Phaseolus vulgaris - Colletotrichum lindemuthianum Pathosystem

“…These genes are necessary for the defense response, whereas at 72 hpi most of these genes were down-regulated, which probably resulted in the development of disease and eventual necrotrophy. Similar to the data presented herein, the differential expression of sugar transporters during the necrotrophic phase have also been reported to be crucial for pathogenesis [63, 64, 65, 66]. …”

“…At this phase various sugar breaking enzymes have been reported to be crucial for the survival of fungus in the necrotic lesion [67, 68, 69]. To cope with less carbon, the up regulation of genes for sugar transporters which have different substrate specificities represents a key factor in the development of the pathogen within its host [63, 65]. Host driven restrictions of nutritional compounds might be significant contributors of disease resistance in the resistant NIL.…”

Sugar‐regulated susceptibility of tomato fruit toColletotrichumandPenicilliumrequires differential mechanisms of pathogenicity and fruit responses

“…only during the necrotrophic phase of the Colletotrichum lindemuthianum infection cycle (Pereira et al, 2013). Upregulation of MFS genes encode proteins that facilitate the movement of small solutes across cell membranes in response to chemiosmotic gradients (Quistgaard et al, 2016).…”

“…MFS transporters are directly involved in balancing the interface between microorganisms and they induce the rapid export of ammonia and other toxic compounds. Given that the availability of monosaccharides to the fungus differ between HighSC and LowSC tomatoes lines, MFS may contribute to enhanced capturing of carbon sources during the necrotrophic development of Colletotrichum and Botrytis (Pereira et al, 2013;Vela-Corcía et al, 2019). Consequently, sugar availability in the host apoplast can determine the outcome of pathogenic interactions between the plant and the phytopathogenic fungus.…”

A major facilitator superfamily transporter in Colletotrichum fructicola (CfMfs1) is required for sugar transport, appressorial turgor pressure, conidiation and pathogenicity

“…In another report, a mutation in Penicillium digitatum MFS2 caused smaller lesions on citrus fruit compared to wild type, demonstrating that this protein contributes to the virulence of this fungal pathogen (Wu et al, 2016). However, there are some exceptions such as an MFS1 mutant of C. lindemuthianum which did not cause a change in plant pathogenicity (Pereira, de Araújo dos, de Araújo, de Queiroz, & Bazzolli, 2013).…”