A new non-hydrophobic cell wall protein (CWP10) of Metarhizium anisopliae enhances conidial hydrophobicity when expressed in Beauveria bassiana.
A cell wall protein, CWP10, resolved from the conidial formic acid extract of a Metarhizium anisopliae isolate, was characterized as a new 9.9-kDa protein with a 32-aa signal peptide with a central hydrophobic region (ca. 10 residues) at its N-terminus. This protein was proven neither to be hydrophobic nor glycosylated and encoded by a 363-bp, single-copy gene with three introns. CWP10 was existent in the conidial extracts of seven of 18 tested M. anisopliae isolates and much more abundant (immunogold-labeled) on conidial walls than in cytoplasm. Integrating the gene into a CWP10-absent strain of Beauveria bassiana led to excellent expression of CWP10 in aerial conidia, increasing net conidial hydrophobicity by 10.8% or adhesion to hydrophobic Teflon by 1.3-fold. However, the expressed protein had no effect on conidial tolerance to thermal and ultraviolet stresses. This is the first report on a non-hydrophobic cell-wall protein enhancing conidial hydrophobicity and adhesion of the fungal species.
Li
Jun
J
Institute of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Ying
Sheng-Hua
SH
Shan
Le-Tian
LT
Feng
Ming-Guang
MG
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D052982:Beauveria / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002448:Cell Adhesion / Q000528:radiation effects; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004271:DNA, Fungal; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D052981:Metarhizium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D013172:Spores, Fungal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology* / Q000528:radiation effects; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
D004271:DNA, Fungal; D005656:Fungal Proteins