Form follows function – The versatile fungal cytoskeleton

Lichius, Alexander; Berepiki, Adokiye; Read, Nick D.

doi:10.1016/j.funbio.2011.02.014

Cited by 41 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 296 publications

(371 reference statements)

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“…Central regulators of actin polymerization and depolymerization are Rho GTPases whose activity is regulated by their membrane-cytoplasmatic shuttling which itself is modulated by external or internal morphogenetic signals. Actin dynamics is thus controlled by a network of signaling pathways that sense and integrate different stimuli [61]. We have recently proposed that the A. niger GTPases RacA and CftA (Cdc42p) can substitute each other with respect to actin assembly but that actin disassembly is mainly under control of RacA.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Transcriptomic Signature of RacA Activation and Inactivation Provides New Insights into the Morphogenetic Network of Aspergillus niger

et al. 2013

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RacA is the main Rho GTPase in Aspergillus niger regulating polarity maintenance via controlling actin dynamics. Both deletion and dominant activation of RacA (RacG18V) provoke an actin localization defect and thereby loss of polarized tip extension, resulting in frequent dichotomous branching in the ΔracA strain and an apolar growing phenotype for RacG18V. In the current study the transcriptomics and physiological consequences of these morphological changes were investigated and compared with the data of the morphogenetic network model for the dichotomous branching mutant ramosa-1. This integrated approach revealed that polar tip growth is most likely orchestrated by the concerted activities of phospholipid signaling, sphingolipid signaling, TORC2 signaling, calcium signaling and CWI signaling pathways. The transcriptomic signatures and the reconstructed network model for all three morphology mutants (ΔracA, RacG18V, ramosa-1) imply that these pathways become integrated to bring about different physiological adaptations including changes in sterol, zinc and amino acid metabolism and changes in ion transport and protein trafficking. Finally, the fate of exocytotic (SncA) and endocytotic (AbpA, SlaB) markers in the dichotomous branching mutant ΔracA was followed, demonstrating that hyperbranching does not per se result in increased protein secretion.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Transcriptomic Signature of RacA Activation and Inactivation Provides New Insights into the Morphogenetic Network of Aspergillus niger

et al. 2013

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“…Monoblepharidomycetes achieved the filamentous form without some of the characteristic cytoplasmic structures and cytoskeletal features present in hyphae of Dikarya (Harris et al 2005, Steinberg 2007, Lichius et al 2011, Riquelme 2013. In contrast to the majority of fungi including Ascomycota (Grove and Bracker 1970, Howard and Aist 1979, López-Franco and Bracker 1996, Basidiomycota (Fuller and Roberson 1988, López-Franco and Bracker 1996, Dijksterhuis 2003, Blastocladiomycota (Vargas et al 1993), the zygomycete, Basidiobolus and Glomeromycota (Bentivenga et al 2013), monoblepharidalean hyphae lack the tightly organized clusters of vesicles that characterize Spitzenkörper (FIG.…”

Section: Comparison Of Components Of the Hyphal Morphogenetic Machinementioning

confidence: 99%

Cytology and molecular phylogenetics of Monoblepharidomycetes provide evidence for multiple independent origins of the hyphal habit in the Fungi

Dee

Mollicone²,

Longcore

et al. 2015

Mycologia

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The evolution of filamentous hyphae underlies an astounding diversity of fungal form and function. We studied the cellular structure and evolutionary origins of the filamentous form in the Monoblepharidomycetes (Chytridiomycota), an early-diverging fungal lineage that displays an exceptional range of body types, from crescent-shaped single cells to sprawling hyphae. To do so, we combined light and transmission electron microscopic analyses of hyphal cytoplasm with molecular phylogenetic reconstructions. Hyphae of Monoblepharidomycetes lack a complex aggregation of secretory vesicles at the hyphal apex (i.e. Spitzenkörper), have centrosomes as primary microtubule organizing centers and have stacked Golgi cisternae instead of tubular/fenestrated Golgi equivalents. The cytoplasmic distribution of actin in Monoblepharidomycetes is comparable to the arrangement observed previously in other filamentous fungi. To discern the origins of Monoblepharidomycetes hyphae, we inferred a phylogeny of the fungi based on 18S and 28S ribosomal DNA sequence data with maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference methods. We focused sampling on Monoblepharidomycetes to infer intergeneric relationships within the class and determined 78 new sequences. Analyses showed class Monoblepharidomycetes to be monophyletic and nested within Chytridiomycota. Hyphal Monoblepharidomycetes formed a clade sister to the genera without hyphae, Harpochytrium and Oedogoniomyces. A likelihood ancestral state reconstruction indicated that hyphae arose independently within the Monoblepharidomycetes lineage and in at least two other lineages. Cytological differences among monoblepharidalean and other fungal hyphae are consistent with these convergent origins.

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“…Though these roles are undoubtedly important for fungal growth and pathogenesis, they have been extensively reviewed elsewhere (Joo et al, 2005; Gladfelter, 2006, 2010; Lindsey and Momany, 2006; Lichius et al, 2011; Hernandez-Rodriguez and Momany, 2012; Mostowy and Cossart, 2012; Spiliotis and Gladfelter, 2012; Bridges and Gladfelter, 2014). In this mini-review, we focus instead on the role of septins in the morphogenetic switch from non-polar to polar growth, generally seen in filamentous fungi as the formation of polar outgrowths, and the importance of this switch for tissue invasion and fungal pathogenesis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Septins Focus Cellular Growth for Host Infection by Pathogenic Fungi

Momany

Talbot

2017

Front. Cell Dev. Biol.

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One of the key challenges faced by microbial pathogens is invasion of host tissue. Fungal pathogens adopt a number of distinct strategies to overcome host cell defenses, including the development of specialized infection structures, the secretion of proteins that manipulate host responses or cellular organization, and the ability to facilitate their own uptake by phagocytic mechanisms. Key to many of these adaptations is the considerable morphogenetic plasticity displayed by pathogenic species. Fungal pathogens can, for example, shift their growth habit between non-polarized spores, or yeast-like cells, and highly polarized hyphal filaments. These polarized filaments can then elaborate differentiated cells, specialized to breach host barriers. Septins play fundamental roles in the ability of diverse fungi to undergo shape changes and organize the F-actin cytoskeleton to facilitate invasive growth. As a consequence, septins are increasingly implicated in fungal pathogenesis, with many septin mutants displaying impairment in their ability to cause diseases of both plants and animals. In this mini-review, we show that a common feature of septin mutants is the emergence of extra polar outgrowths during morphological transitions, such as emergence of germ tubes from conidia or branches from hyphae. We propose that because septins detect and stabilize membrane curvature, they prevent extra polar outgrowths and thereby focus fungal invasive force, allowing substrate invasion.

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Form follows function – The versatile fungal cytoskeleton

Cited by 41 publications

References 296 publications

The Transcriptomic Signature of RacA Activation and Inactivation Provides New Insights into the Morphogenetic Network of Aspergillus niger

The Transcriptomic Signature of RacA Activation and Inactivation Provides New Insights into the Morphogenetic Network of Aspergillus niger

Cytology and molecular phylogenetics of Monoblepharidomycetes provide evidence for multiple independent origins of the hyphal habit in the Fungi

Septins Focus Cellular Growth for Host Infection by Pathogenic Fungi

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