title: Functional diversification of cerato-platanins in Moniliophthora perniciosa as seen by differential expression and protein function specialization.
abstract: Cerato-platanins (CP) are small, cysteine-rich fungal-secreted proteins involved in the various stages of the host-fungus interaction process, acting as phytotoxins, elicitors, and allergens. We identified 12 CP genes (MpCP1 to MpCP12) in the genome of Moniliophthora perniciosa, the causal agent of witches' broom disease in cacao, and showed that they present distinct expression profiles throughout fungal development and infection. We determined the X-ray crystal structures of MpCP1, MpCP2, MpCP3, and MpCP5, representative of different branches of a phylogenetic tree and expressed at different stages of the disease. Structure-based biochemistry, in combination with nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry, allowed us to define specialized capabilities regarding self-assembling and the direct binding to chitin and N-acetylglucosamine (NAG) tetramers, a fungal cell wall building block, and to map a previously unknown binding region in MpCP5. Moreover, fibers of MpCP2 were shown to act as expansin and facilitate basidiospore germination whereas soluble MpCP5 blocked NAG6-induced defense response. The correlation between these roles, the fungus life cycle, and its tug-of-war interaction with cacao plants is discussed.
authors.forename: Mario R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: de O Barsottini
authors.forename: Juliana F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: de Oliveira
authors.forename: Douglas
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Adamoski
authors.forename: Paulo J P L
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Teixeira
authors.forename: Paula F V
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: do Prado
authors.forename: Henrique O
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Tiezzi
authors.forename: Mauricio L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Sforça
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cassago
authors.forename: Rodrigo V
authors.initials: RV
authors.lastname: Portugal
authors.forename: Paulo S L
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: de Oliveira
authors.forename: Ana C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: de M Zeri
authors.forename: Sandra M G
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Dias
authors.forename: Gonçalo A G
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.forename: Andre L B
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Ambrosio
mesh_terms: D000117:Acetylglucosamine / Q000378:metabolism; D000363:Agaricales / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D002099:Cacao / Q000382:microbiology*; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000378:metabolism; D002686:Chitin / Q000378:metabolism; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D015870:Gene Expression; D015966:Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; D016681:Genome, Fungal / Q000235:genetics*; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D019906:Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; D010802:Phylogeny; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D011485:Protein Binding; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D013172:Spores, Fungal
chemical_list: D005656:Fungal Proteins; D002686:Chitin; D000117:Acetylglucosamine