Genomic and Untargeted Metabolomic Analysis of Secondary Metabolites in the Strain MH191 Shows Media-Based Dependency for the Production of Bioactive Compounds with Potential Antifungal Activity.

species can form beneficial relationships with hosts as endophytes, including the phytopathogen-inhibiting strain, MH191, isolated from wheat plants. Using genomic characterization and untargeted metabolomics, we explored the capacity of strain MH191 to inhibit a range of fungal phytopathogens through the production of secondary metabolites. Complete genome assembly of strain MH191 predicted 24 biosynthetic gene clusters.

Hybrid Genome Assemblies of Marine Bacteria Isolated from the Sponge Sycon capricorn.

Sponges have complex relationships with bacteria, the roles of which include food, important components of the holobiont, pathogens, and accidentally accumulated elements of the environment. Consequently, sponges are reservoirs of microbial genomes and novel compounds. Therefore, we isolated and sequenced the whole genomes of bacterial species from the calcareous sponge Sycon capricorn.

Complete Genome Sequence of an Australian Strain of the Lichen-Forming Fungus Endocarpon pusillum (Hedwig).

The cosmopolitan lichen-forming fungus (Hedwig) has previously been used as a model for the study of symbiosis and drought resistance. Here, we present the annotated genome of the Australian strain EPUS1.4.

Volatile Molecules Secreted by the Wheat Pathogen Are Involved in Development and Phytotoxicity.

Septoria nodorum blotch is a major disease of wheat caused by the fungus . Recent studies have demonstrated that secondary metabolites, including polyketides and non-ribosomal peptides, produced by the pathogen play important roles in disease and development. However, there is currently no knowledge on the composition or biological activity of the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) secreted by .

Molecular techniques and their limitations shape our view of the holobiont.

It is now recognised that the biology of almost any organism cannot be fully understood without recognising the existence and potential functional importance of associated microbes. Arguably, the emergence of this holistic viewpoint may never have occurred without the development of a crucial molecular technique, 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing, which allowed microbial communities to be easily profiled across a broad range of contexts. A diverse array of molecular techniques are now used to profile microbial communities, infer their evolutionary histories, visualise them in host tissues, and measure their molecular activity.

Acquisition and Loss of Secondary Metabolites Shaped the Evolutionary Path of Three Emerging Phytopathogens of Wheat.

White grain disorder is a recently emerged wheat disease in Australia, caused by Eutiarosporella darliae, E. pseudodarliae, and E. tritici-australis.

Fungal phytopathogens encode functional homologues of plant rapid alkalinization factor (RALF) peptides.

In this article, we describe the presence of genes encoding close homologues of an endogenous plant peptide, rapid alkalinization factor (RALF), within the genomes of 26 species of phytopathogenic fungi. Members of the RALF family are key growth factors in plants, and the sequence of the RALF active region is well conserved between plant and fungal proteins. RALF1-like sequences were observed in most cases; however, RALF27-like sequences were present in the Sphaerulina musiva and Septoria populicola genomes.

SnPKS19 Encodes the Polyketide Synthase for Alternariol Mycotoxin Biosynthesis in the Wheat Pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum.

Alternariol (AOH) is an important mycotoxin from the Alternaria fungi. AOH was detected for the first time in the wheat pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum in a recent study. Here, we exploited reverse genetics to demonstrate that SNOG_15829 (SnPKS19), a close homolog of Penicillium aethiopicum norlichexanthone (NLX) synthase gene gsfA, is required for AOH production.

Characterising the role of GABA and its metabolism in the wheat pathogen Stagonospora nodorum.

A reverse genetics approach was used to investigate the role of γ-aminobutyric acid metabolism in the wheat pathogenic fungus Stagonospora nodorum. The creation of mutants lacking Sdh1, the gene encoding succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase, resulted in strains that grew poorly on γ-aminobutyric acid as a nitrogen source. The sdh1 mutants were more susceptible to reactive oxygen stress but were less affected by increased growth temperatures.