GPCR-mediated glucose sensing system regulates light-dependent fungal development and mycotoxin production

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Dos Reis, T. F., Mellado, L., Lohmar, J. M., Pereira Silva, L., Zhou, J-J., Calvo, A. M., Goldman, G. H. and Brown, N. A. 2019. GPCR-mediated glucose sensing system regulates light-dependent fungal development and mycotoxin production. PLOS Genetics. 15 (10), p. e1008419. https://doi.org/10.1371/journalpgen.1008419

AuthorsDos Reis, T. F., Mellado, L., Lohmar, J. M., Pereira Silva, L., Zhou, J-J., Calvo, A. M., Goldman, G. H. and Brown, N. A.
Abstract

Microorganisms sense environmental fluctuations in nutrients and light, coordinating their growth and development accordingly. Despite their critical roles in fungi, only a few G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) have been characterized. The Aspergillus nidulans genome encodes 86 putative GPCRs. Here, we characterise a carbon starvation-induced GPCR-mediated glucose sensing mechanism in A. nidulans. This includes two class V (gprH and gprI) and one class VII (gprM) GPCRs, which in response to glucose promote cAMP signalling, germination and hyphal growth, while negatively regulating sexual development in a light-dependent manner. We demonstrate that GprH regulates sexual development via influencing VeA activity, a key light-dependent regulator of fungal morphogenesis and secondary metabolism. We show that GprH and GprM are light-independent negative regulators of sterigmatocystin biosynthesis. Additionally, we reveal the epistatic interactions between the three GPCRs in regulating sexual development and sterigmatocystin production. In conclusion, GprH, GprM and GprI constitute a novel carbon starvation-induced glucose sensing mechanism that functions upstream of cAMP-PKA signalling to regulate fungal development and mycotoxin production.

Year of Publication2019
JournalPLOS Genetics
Journal citation15 (10), p. e1008419
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1371/journalpgen.1008419
Open accessPublished as green open access
FunderBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Funder project or codeBB/GCRF-IAA17/18
Publisher's version
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online14 Oct 2019
Publication process dates
Accepted13 Sep 2019
PublisherPublic Library of Science (PLOS)
ISSN1553-7404

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