title: Autophagy-related lipase FgATG15 of Fusarium graminearum is important for lipid turnover and plant infection.
abstract: Autophagy is a non-selective degradation pathway in eukaryotic cells that is conserved from yeasts to humans. Autophagy is involved in the virulence of several pathogenic fungi such as Magnaporthe grisea or Colletotrichum orbiculare. In the current study, we identified and disrupted an autophagy-like lipase FgATG15 in Fusarium graminearum. We showed that FgATG15 exhibits lipase activity when heterologously expressed in P. pastoris. We used a gene deletion approach to characterize the function of the enzyme. We demonstrate that FgATG15 is involved in fungal growth and aerial hyphae production. FgATG15 is also involved in conidia production and germination, and disruption of FgATG15 led to aberrant conidia shapes. FgATG15 disruptants were reduced in storage lipid degradation under starvation conditions, implicating FgATG15's involvement in lipid turnover. Moreover, wheat head infection by the disruptants was severely attenuated, indicating the involvement of FgATG15 in pathogenesis. Additionally, we found that the deoxynivalenol levels of FgATG15 disruptants were significantly decreased compared with the wild type strain. Taken together, we show that FgATG15 is involved in numerous developmental processes and could be exploited as an antifungal target.
authors.affiliation: University of Hamburg, Biocenter Klein Flottbek, Department of Molecular Phytopathology and Genetics, Ohnhorststrasse 18, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Long Nam
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Jörg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bormann
authors.forename: Giang Thi Thu
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Le
authors.forename: Cornelia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stärkel
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Olsson
authors.forename: Joshua D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Nosanchuk
authors.forename: Henriette
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Giese
authors.forename: Wilhelm
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Schäfer
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005670:Fusarium / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D015870:Gene Expression; D025301:Hyphae / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development; D008049:Lipase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010843:Pichia / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D010944:Plants / Q000382:microbiology*; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013172:Spores, Fungal / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development; D014255:Trichothecenes / Q000032:analysis; D014908:Triticum / Q000382:microbiology; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014255:Trichothecenes; D037521:Virulence Factors; D008049:Lipase; C007262:deoxynivalenol