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A network involving Rho‐type GTPases, a paxillin and a formin homologue regulates spore length and spore wall integrity in the filamentous fungus Ashbya gossypii
Author(s) -
Lickfeld Manuela,
Schmitz HansPeter
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
molecular microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.857
H-Index - 247
eISSN - 1365-2958
pISSN - 0950-382X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2012.08128.x
Subject(s) - biology , formins , spore , microbiology and biotechnology , hypha , mutant , actin , fungal protein , morphogenesis , genetics , actin cytoskeleton , cytoskeleton , gene , cell
Summary Fungi produce spores that allow for their dispersal and survival under harsh environmental conditions. These spores can have an astonishing variety of shapes and sizes. Using the highly polar, needle‐shaped spores of the ascomycete Ashbya gossypii as a model, we demonstrated that spores produced by this organism are not simple continuous structures but rather consist of three different segments that correlate with the accumulation of different materials: a rigid tip segment, a more fragile main spore‐compartment and a solid tail segment. Little is currently known about the regulatory mechanisms that control the formation of the characteristic spore morphologies. We tested a variety of mutant strains for their spore phenotypes, including spore size, shape and wall defects. The mutants that we identified as displaying such phenotypes are all known for their roles in the regulation of hyphal tip growth, including the formin protein Ag Bni1, the homologous Rho‐type GTPases Ag Rho1a and Ag Rho1b and the scaffold protein Ag Pxl1. Our observations suggest that these proteins form a signalling network controlling spore length by regulating the formation of actin structures.