title: The pectate lyase encoded by the pecCl1 gene is an important determinant for the aggressiveness of Colletotrichum lindemuthianum.
abstract: Colletotrichum lindemuthianum is the causal agent of anthracnose in the common bean, and the genes that encode its cell-wall-degrading enzymes are crucial for the development of the disease. Pectinases are the most important group of cell wall-degrading enzymes produced by phytopathogenic fungi. The pecC1l gene, which encodes a pectate lyase in C. lindemuthianum, was isolated and characterized. Possible cis-regulatory elements and transcription factor binding sites that may be involved in the regulation of genetic expression were detected in the promoter region of the gene. pecCl1 is represented by a single copy in the genome of C. lindemuthianum, though in silico analyses of the genomes of Colletotrichum graminicola and Colletotrichum higginsianum suggest that the genome of C. lindemuthianum includes other genes that encode pectate lyases. Phylogenetic analysis detected two groups that clustered based on different members of the pectate lyase family. Analysis of the differential expression of pecCl1 during different stages of infection showed a significant increase in pecCl1 expression five days after infection, at the onset of the necrotrophic phase. The split-maker technique proved to be an efficient method for inactivation of the pecCl1 gene, which allowed functional study of a mutant with a site-specific integration. Though gene inactivation did not result in complete loss of pectate lyase activity, the symptoms of anthracnose were reduced. Analysis of pectate lyases might not only contribute to the understanding of anthracnose in the common bean but might also lead to the discovery of an additional target for controlling anthracnose.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Microorganism Molecular Genetics, Department of Microbiology/Institute of Microbiology Applied to Agriculture and Livestock Raising (BIOAGRO), Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa-MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Andréia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cnossen-Fassoni
authors.forename: Denise Mara Soares
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Bazzolli
authors.forename: Sérgio Hermínio
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Brommonschenkel
authors.forename: Elza
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fernandes de Araújo
authors.forename: Marisa Vieira
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: de Queiroz
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D020231:Colletotrichum / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D007887:Fabaceae / Q000382:microbiology; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018628:Gene Dosage; D015966:Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010641:Phenotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D011133:Polysaccharide-Lyases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
chemical_list: D005656:Fungal Proteins; D011133:Polysaccharide-Lyases; C023911:pectate lyase