The differential virulence of Fusarium strains causing corneal infections and plant diseases is associated with accessory chromosome composition.

is a cross-kingdom pathogen. While some strains cause disseminated fusariosis and blinding corneal infections in humans, others are responsible for devastating vascular wilt diseases in plants. To better understand the distinct adaptations of to animal or plant hosts, we conducted a comparative phenotypic and genetic analysis of two strains: MRL8996 (isolated from a keratitis patient) and Fol4287 (isolated from a wilted tomato []).

Local Application of Acibenzolar--Methyl Treatment Induces Antiviral Responses in Distal Leaves of .

Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is a plant defense mechanism that provides protection against a broad spectrum of pathogens in distal tissues. Recent studies have revealed a concerted function of salicylic acid (SA) and -hydroxypipecolic acid (NHP) in the establishment of SAR against bacterial pathogens, but it remains unknown whether NHP is also involved in SAR against viruses. We found that the local application of acibenzolar--methyl (ASM), a synthetic analog of SA, suppressed plantago asiatica mosaic virus (PlAMV) infection in the distal leaves of .

The MAT1 locus is required for microconidia-mediated sexual fertility in the rice blast fungus.

Rice blast fungus (Pyricularia oryzae) is a heterothallic ascomycete that causes the most destructive disease in cultivated rice worldwide. This fungus reproduces sexually and asexually, and its mating type is determined by the MAT1 locus, MAT1-1 or MAT1-2. Interestingly, most rice-infecting field isolates show a loss of female fertility, but the MAT1 locus is highly conserved in female-sterile isolates.

Dynamin-related protein 2 interacts with the membrane-associated methyltransferase domain of plantago asiatica mosaic virus replicase and promotes viral replication.

Positive-strand RNA viruses replicate their RNA in the viral replication complex, a spherical structure formed by remodeling of host intracellular membranes. This process also requires the interaction between viral membrane-associated replication proteins and host factors. We previously identified the membrane-associated determinant of the replicase of plantago asiatica mosaic virus (PlAMV), a positive-strand RNA virus of the genus Potexvirus, in its methyltransferase (MET) domain, and suggested that its interaction with host factors is required to establish viral replication.