title: The eukaryotic protein kinase superfamily of the necrotrophic fungal plant pathogen, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.
abstract: Protein kinases have been implicated in the regulation of many processes that guide pathogen development throughout the course of infection. A survey of the Sclerotinia sclerotiorum genome for genes encoding proteins containing the highly conserved eukaryotic protein kinase (ePK) domain, the largest protein kinase superfamily, revealed 92 S. sclerotiorum ePKs. This review examines the composition of the S. sclerotiorum ePKs based on conserved motifs within the ePK domain family, and relates this to orthologues found in other filamentous fungi and yeasts. The ePKs are also discussed in terms of their proposed role(s) in aspects of host pathogenesis, including the coordination of mycelial growth/development and deployment of pathogenicity determinants in response to environmental stimuli, nutrients and stress.
authors.affiliation: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 0X2.|Department of Food and Bioproduct Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5A9.
authors.forename: Dwayne D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Hegedus
authors.affiliation: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 0X2.
authors.forename: Kelsey
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gerbrandt
authors.affiliation: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 0X2.
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Coutu
mesh_terms: D001203:Ascomycota / Q000201:enzymology*; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000201:enzymology*; D005810:Multigene Family; D010802:Phylogeny; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D011494:Protein Kinases
keywords: Sclerotinia sclerotiorum; pathogenicity; protein kinases; stress response