title: LAMMER Kinase LkhA plays multiple roles in the vegetative growth and asexual and sexual development of Aspergillus nidulans.
abstract: LAMMER kinase plays pivotal roles in various physiological processes in eukaryotes; however, its function in filamentous fungi is not known. We performed molecular studies on the function of the Aspergillus nidulans LAMMER kinase, LkhA, and report its involvement in multiple developmental processes. The gene for LkhA was highly expressed during reproductive organ development, such as that of conidiophores and cleistothecia. During vegetative growth, the patterns of germ tube emergence and hyphal polarity were changed and septation was increased by lkhA deletion. Northern analyses showed that lkhA regulated the transcription of brlA, csnD, and ppoA, which supported the detrimental effect of lkhA-deletion on asexual and sexual differentiation. LkhA also affected expression of cyclin-dependent kinase NimX(cdc2), a multiple cell cycle regulator, and StuA, an APSES family of fungal transcription factors that play pivotal roles in multiple differentiation processes. Here, for the first time, we present molecular evidence showing that LAMMER kinase is involved in A. nidulans development by modulating the expression of key regulators of developmental processes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Molecular Biology, College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea.
authors.forename: Eun-Hye
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Ji-Ae
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hyun-Woo
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Hee-Moon
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001233:Aspergillus nidulans / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D002455:Cell Division; D016764:Cell Polarity; D017353:Gene Deletion; D015966:Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D025301:Hyphae / Q000201:enzymology / Q000254:growth & development; D050296:Microbial Viability; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010641:Phenotype; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012100:Reproduction, Asexual; D013172:Spores, Fungal / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D011494:Protein Kinases