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Background  In fungi, environmental pH is an important signal for development, and successful host colonization depends on homeostasis. Surprisingly, little is known regarding the role of pH in fungal-fungal interactions. Species of  Trichoderma  grow as soil saprobes but many are primarily mycotrophic, using other fungi as hosts. Therefore,  Trichoderma  spp .  are studied for their potential in biocontrol of plant diseases. Particularly in alkaline soil, pH is a critical limiting factor for these biofungicides, whose optimal growth pH is 4–6. Gaining an understanding of pH adaptability is an important step in broadening the activity spectrum of these economically important fungi.    Results  We studied the pH-responsive transcription factor PacC by gene knockout and by introduction of a constitutively active allele ( pacC   c  ). Δ pacC  mutants exhibited reduced growth at alkaline pH, while  pacC   c   strains grew poorly at acidic pH. In plate confrontation assays Δ pacC  mutants showed decreased ability to compete with the plant pathogens  Rhizoctonia solani  and  Sclerotium rolfsii . The  pacC   c   strain exhibited an overgrowth of  R. solani  that was comparable to the wild type, but was unable to overgrow  S. rolfsii . To identify genes whose expression is dependent on pH and  pacC , we designed oligonucleotide microarrays from the transcript models of the  T. virens  genome, and compared the transcriptomes of wild type and mutant cultures exposed to high or low pH. Transcript levels from several functional classes were dependent on  pacC , on pH, or on both. Furthermore, the expression of a set of  pacC -dependent genes was increased in the constitutively-active  pacC   c   strain, and was pH-independent in some, but not all cases.    Conclusions  PacC is important for biocontrol-related antagonism of other fungi by  T. virens . As much as 5% of the transcriptome is pH-dependent, and of these genes, some 25% depend on  pacC . Secondary metabolite biosynthesis and ion transport are among the relevant gene classes. We suggest that Δ pacC  mutants may have lost their full biocontrol potential due to their inability to adapt to alkaline pH, to perceive ambient pH, or both. The results raise the novel possibility of genetically manipulating  Trichoderma  in order to improve adaptability and biocontrol at alkaline pH.

PacC and pH–dependent transcriptome of the mycotrophic fungus Trichoderma virens