Abstract
Biotrophic fungal pathogens of plants must sense and adapt to the host environment to complete their life cycles. Recent transcriptome studies of the infection of maize by the biotrophic pathogen Ustilago maydis are providing molecular insights into an ordered program of changes in gene expression and the deployment of effectors as well as key features of nutrient acquisition. In particular, the transcriptome data provide a deeper appreciation of the complexity of the transcription factor network that controls the biotrophic program of invasion, proliferation, and sporulation. Additionally, transcriptome analysis during tumor formation, a key late stage in the life cycle, revealed features of the remodeling of host and pathogen metabolism that may support the formation of tremendous numbers of spores. Transcriptome studies are also appearing for other smut species during interactions with their hosts, thereby providing opportunities for comparative approaches to understand biotrophic adaptation.
Highlights
Fungal phytopathogens in the order Ustilaginales generally attack cereal and grass plants to cause smut diseases, so named because of the tremendous masses of sooty spores produced in infected tissue (Figure 1)
We focus on recent genome-wide transcriptome studies of the infection process that have provided insights into the transcriptional regulation associated with disease, the deployment of effectors by U. maydis to manage the infection process, and the remodeling of host metabolism during fungal proliferation
This study focused on the transcriptional responses of the host at 24, 48, and 120 hours after inoculation (HAI) in the resistant and susceptible cultivars
Summary
Fungal phytopathogens in the order Ustilaginales generally attack cereal and grass plants to cause smut diseases, so named because of the tremendous masses of sooty spores produced in infected tissue (Figure 1). We focus on recent genome-wide transcriptome studies of the infection process that have provided insights into the transcriptional regulation associated with disease, the deployment of effectors by U. maydis to manage the infection process, and the remodeling of host metabolism during fungal proliferation. These gene sets are expressed during 1) growth on the plant surface (early), 2) biotrophic development in planta (middle), and 3) tumor formation (late/sporogenesis).
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