Two sirtuin proteins, Hst3 and Hst4, modulate asexual development, stress tolerance, and virulence by affecting global gene expression in .

is a widely used entomopathogenic fungus in insect biological control applications. In this study, we investigated the role of two sirtuin homologs, BbHst3 and BbHst4, in the biological activities and pathogenicity of . Our results showed that deletion of and/or led to impaired sporulation, reduced (~50%) conidial production, and decreased tolerance to various stresses, including osmotic, oxidative, and cell wall-disturbing agents.

Contributions of a Histone Deacetylase (SirT2/Hst2) to Growth, Development, and Virulence.

Sirtuins are a class of histone deacetylases that promote heterochromatin formation to repress transcription. The entomopathogenic fungus contains six sirtuin homologs. The class III histone deacetylase, BbSir2, has been previously shown to affect the regulation of carbon/nitrogen metabolism and asexual development, with only moderate effects on virulence.

The Spt10 GNAT Superfamily Protein Modulates Development, Cell Cycle Progression and Virulence in the Fungal Insect Pathogen, .

Chromatin remodeling is mediated in part by post-translational acetylation/deacetylation modifications of histones. Histone acetyltransferases (HATs), e.g.

Rice false smut fungus hijacks the rice nutrients supply by blocking and mimicking the fertilization of rice ovary.

Rice false smut disease is an increasing threat to rice production in the world. Despite of best efforts, research for the infection of the fungus has yielded equivocal and conflicting results about where and how the infection is initiated and developed. Here we show a stepwise infection pattern and sophisticated regulation during this process.

Exploring mechanisms of resistance to dimethachlone in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.

Background: The dicarboximide fungicide dimethachlone has been widely used in China for more than 12 years to control the Sclerotinia stem rot caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum disease. First signs of resistance in the field are reported at low frequency. In this study, four resistant isolate/mutants were used to explore still unknown mechanisms leading to dimethachlone resistance.

Degradation of oxalic acid by the mycoparasite Coniothyrium minitans plays an important role in interacting with Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.

Coniothyrium minitans (Cm) is a mycoparasite of the phytopathogenic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Ss). Ss produces a virulence factor oxalic acid (OA) which is toxic to plants and also to Cm, and Cm detoxifies OA by degradation. In this study, two oxalate decarboxylase genes, Cmoxdc1 and Cmoxdc2, were cloned from Cm strain Chy-1.

DsRNA-free transmissible hypovirulence associated with formation of intra-hyphal hyphae in Botrytis cinerea.

A spontaneous mutant CanBc-3HV and its parental strain CanBc-3 of Botrytis cinerea were investigated in terms of pathogenicity, colony morphology, hypovirulence transmissibility, presence of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), and formation of intra-hyphal hyphae (IH). Results showed that inoculation of CanBc-3HV on detached leaves of Brassica napus did not produce any visible necrotic lesions (20°C, 72h), whereas inoculation of CanBc-3 caused necrotic leaf lesions. Compared to CanBc-3, CanBc-3HV grew slowly, formed numerous mycelial sectors, sporulated sporadically and failed to produce sclerotia on potato dextrose agar (PDA) (20°C, 15d).

Botrytis fabiopsis, a new species causing chocolate spot of broad bean in central China.

The current study was conducted to identify Botrytis spp. isolated from symptomatic broad bean plants grown in Hubei Province, China. Among 184 Botrytis strains, three distinct species, B.