Regulation of Early Events in Hyphal Elongation, Branching and Differentiation of Filamentous Fungi

In filamentous fungi, hyphal elongation, branching and morphogenesis are in many cases the key to successful saprophytic and pathogenic fungal proliferation. The understanding of the fungal morphogenetic response to environmental cues is in its infancy. Studies concerning the regulation of fungal growth and development (some of which have been obtained by the participating collaborators in this project) point to the fact that ser/thr protein kinases and phosphatases are (i) involved in the regulation of such processes and (ii) share common structural and functional features between saprophytes and pathogens. It is our objective to combine a pharmaceutical and a genetic approach in order to identify, characterize and functionally dissect some of the regulatory factors involved in hyphal growth, branching and differentiation. Using an immunohistochemical approach, a ser/thr protein kinase involved in hyphal elongation in both Neurospora crassa and Colletotrichum trifolii has been localized in order to identify the physical arena of regulation of hyphal elongation. The analysis of additional kinases and phosphatases (e.g. Protein kinase C, cAMP-dependent kinase, lipid-activated protein kinase, components of the type 2A protein phosphatase) as well as a RAS-related gene (an additional key participant in signal transduction) has been performed. In order to succeed in advancing the goals of this project, we have taken advantage of available elongation/branching mutants in N. crassa and continuously combined the accumulated information obtained while studying the two systems in order to dissect the elements involved in these processes. The various inhibitors/effectors analyzed can serve as a basis for modification to be used as anti-fungal compounds. Understanding the regulation of hyphal proliferation is a key requirement for identifying novel target points for either curbing fungal growth (as in the case of pathogenesis) or affecting growth patterns in various biotechnological processes. The major objective of our joint project was to advance our understanding of regulation of hyphal growth, especially during early events of fungal germination. Towards achieving this goal, we have coupled the analysis of a genetically tractable organism (N. crassa) with a plant pathogen o economic importance (C. trifolii). As the project progressed we believe that the results obtained have provided a reinforcement to our basic approach which called for combining the two fungal systems for a joint research project. On the one hand, we feel that much of the advance made was possible due to the amenability of N. crassa to genetic manipulations. The relevance of some of the initial findings obtained in Neurospora have been proven to be relevant to the plant pathogen while unique features of the pathogen have been identified in Colletotrichum. Most of the results obtained from this research project have been published. Thus, the main volume of this report is comprised of the relevant publications describing the research and results obtained.