The genome of the basidiomycetous yeast and human pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans.
Cryptococcus neoformans is a basidiomycetous yeast ubiquitous in the environment, a model for fungal pathogenesis, and an opportunistic human pathogen of global importance. We have sequenced its approximately 20-megabase genome, which contains approximately 6500 intron-rich gene structures and encodes a transcriptome abundant in alternatively spliced and antisense messages. The genome is rich in transposons, many of which cluster at candidate centromeric regions. The presence of these transposons may drive karyotype instability and phenotypic variation. C. neoformans encodes unique genes that may contribute to its unusual virulence properties, and comparison of two phenotypically distinct strains reveals variation in gene content in addition to sequence polymorphisms between the genomes.
Loftus
Brendan J
BJ
Institute for Genomic Research, 9712 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA. bjloftus@tigr.org
Fung
Eula
E
Roncaglia
Paola
P
Rowley
Don
D
Amedeo
Paolo
P
Bruno
Dan
D
Vamathevan
Jessica
J
Miranda
Molly
M
Anderson
Iain J
IJ
Fraser
James A
JA
Allen
Jonathan E
JE
Bosdet
Ian E
IE
Brent
Michael R
MR
Chiu
Readman
R
Doering
Tamara L
TL
Donlin
Maureen J
MJ
D'Souza
Cletus A
CA
Fox
Deborah S
DS
Grinberg
Viktoriya
V
Fu
Jianmin
J
Fukushima
Marilyn
M
Haas
Brian J
BJ
Huang
James C
JC
Janbon
Guilhem
G
Jones
Steven J M
SJ
Koo
Hean L
HL
Krzywinski
Martin I
MI
Kwon-Chung
June K
JK
Lengeler
Klaus B
KB
Maiti
Rama
R
Marra
Marco A
MA
Marra
Robert E
RE
Mathewson
Carrie A
CA
Mitchell
Thomas G
TG
Pertea
Mihaela
M
Riggs
Florenta R
FR
Salzberg
Steven L
SL
Schein
Jacqueline E
JE
Shvartsbeyn
Alla
A
Shin
Heesun
H
Shumway
Martin
M
Specht
Charles A
CA
Suh
Bernard B
BB
Tenney
Aaron
A
Utterback
Terry R
TR
Wickes
Brian L
BL
Wortman
Jennifer R
JR
Wye
Natasja H
NH
Kronstad
James W
JW
Lodge
Jennifer K
JK
Heitman
Joseph
J
Davis
Ronald W
RW
Fraser
Claire M
CM
Hyman
Richard W
RW
D017398:Alternative Splicing; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000378:metabolism; D015825:Chromosomes, Fungal / Q000235:genetics; D019295:Computational Biology; D003455:Cryptococcus neoformans / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D015723:Gene Library; D005800:Genes, Fungal; D016681:Genome, Fungal; D006801:Humans; D007438:Introns; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010641:Phenotype; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000378:metabolism; D016372:RNA, Antisense; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014774:Virulence; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000378:metabolism
D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D005656:Fungal Proteins; D011134:Polysaccharides; D016372:RNA, Antisense; D037521:Virulence Factors