title: Lah is a transmembrane protein and requires Spa10 for stable positioning of Woronin bodies at the septal pore of Aspergillus fumigatus.
abstract: Woronin bodies are specialized, fungal-specific organelles that enable an immediate closure of septal pores after injury to protect hyphae from excessive cytoplasmic bleeding. In most Ascomycetes, Woronin bodies are tethered at the septal pore by so-called Lah proteins. Using the pathogenic mold Aspergillus fumigatus as a model organism, we show that the C-terminal 288 amino acids of Lah (LahC288) bind to the rim of the septal pore. LahC288essentially consists of a membrane spanning region and a putative extracellular domain, which are both required for the targeting to the septum. In an A. fumigatus rho4 deletion mutant that has a severe defect in septum formation, LahC288is recruited to spot-like structures in or at the lateral membrane. This suggests that LahC is recruited before Rho4 starts to govern the septation process. Accordingly, we found that in wild type hyphae Lah is bound before a cross-wall emerges and thus enables a tethering of Woronin bodies at the site of the newly formed septum. Finally, we identified Spa10, a member of a recently described family of septal pore-associated proteins, as a first protein that directly or indirectly interacts with LahC to allow a stable positioning of Woronin bodies at the mature septum.
authors.affiliation: Max-von-Pettenkofer-Institute, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 80336, Germany.
authors.forename: Yannik
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Leonhardt
authors.affiliation: Max-von-Pettenkofer-Institute, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 80336, Germany.
authors.forename: Sara Carina
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Kakoschke
authors.affiliation: Max-von-Pettenkofer-Institute, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 80336, Germany.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wagener
authors.affiliation: Max-von-Pettenkofer-Institute, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 80336, Germany.|Institute for Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 80539, Germany.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ebel
mesh_terms: D001232:Aspergillus fumigatus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D025301:Hyphae / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005656:Fungal Proteins; D008565:Membrane Proteins