title: BZcon1, a SANT/Myb-type gene involved in the conidiation of Cochliobolus carbonum.
abstract: The fungal pathogen Cochliobolus carbonum (anamorph, Bipolaris zeicola) causes Northern Leaf Spot, leading to a ubiquitous and devastating foliar disease of corn in Yunnan Province, China. Asexual spores (conidia) play a major role in both epidemics and pathogenesis of Northern Leaf Spot, but the molecular mechanism of conidiation in C. carbonum has remained elusive. Here, using a map-based cloning strategy, we cloned a single dominant gene, designated as BZcon1 (for Bipolaris zeicola conidiation), which encodes a predicted unknown protein containing 402 amino acids, with two common conserved SANT/Myb domains in N-terminal. The BZcon1 knockout mutant completely lost the capability to produce conidiophores and conidia but displayed no effect on hyphal growth and sexual reproduction. The introduced BZcon1 gene fully complemented the BZcon1 null mutation, restoring the capability for sporulation. These data suggested that the BZcon1 gene is essential for the conidiation of C. carbonum.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Plant Protection, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Jun-xiang
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Yi-xin
authors.initials: YX
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, State University of New York, New Paltz, New York 12561.
authors.forename: Honhing
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Peng-fei
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Plant Protection, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China ynfh2007@163.com.
authors.forename: Yue-qiu
authors.initials: YQ
authors.lastname: He
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001203:Ascomycota / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D016386:Chromosome Walking; D022202:Chromosomes, Artificial, Bacterial; D004271:DNA, Fungal; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D005800:Genes, Fungal; D025282:Mycelium / Q000378:metabolism; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013172:Spores, Fungal / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal
keywords: Bipolaris zeicola; Northern Leaf Spot; clone; conidia; sporulation