title: A Gin4-Like Protein Kinase GIL1 Involvement in Hyphal Growth, Asexual Development, and Pathogenesis in Fusarium graminearum.
abstract: Fusarium graminearumis the main causal agent ofFusariumhead blight (FHB) on wheat and barley. In a previous study, a GIN4-like protein kinase gene,GIL1, was found to be important for plant infection and sexual reproduction. In this study we further characterized the functions ofGIL1kinase in different developmental processes. The Δgil1mutants were reduced in growth, conidiation, and virulence, and formed whitish and compact colonies. Although phialide formation was rarely observed in the mutants, deletion ofGIL1resulted in increased hyphal branching and increased tolerance to cell wall and cell membrane stresses. The Δgil1mutants produced straight, elongated conidia lacking of distinct foot cells and being delayed in germination. Compared with the wild type, some compartments in the vegetative hyphae of Δgil1mutants had longer septal distances and increased number of nuclei, suggestingGIL1is related to cytokinesis and septation. Localization of the GIL1-GFP fusion proteins to the septum and hyphal branching and fusion sites further supported its roles in septation and branching. Overall, our results indicate thatGIL1plays a role in vegetative growth and plant infection inF. graminearum, and is involved in septation and hyphal branching.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China. yudan@nwsuaf.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China. zsjw4501@163.com.
authors.forename: Shijie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China. wy20105366@163.com.
authors.forename: Xiaoping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA. jinrong@purdue.edu.
authors.forename: Jin-Rong
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77840, USA. schultzz@tamu.edu.
authors.forename: Zachary
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Schultzhaus
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China. jqiaojun@nwsuaf.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Qiaojun
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Jin
mesh_terms: D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D048749:Cytokinesis / Q000235:genetics; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D060585:Fusariosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D005670:Fusarium / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology*; D025301:Hyphae / Q000502:physiology*; D009154:Mutation; D010641:Phenotype; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D021381:Protein Transport; D012100:Reproduction, Asexual / Q000235:genetics*; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D005656:Fungal Proteins; D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases
keywords: Gibberella zeae; conidiogenesis; septation; virulence; wheat head blight; wheat scab