Improved sulfur nutrition provides the basis for enhanced production of sulfur-containing defense compounds in Arabidopsis thaliana upon inoculation with Alternaria brassicicola.

The antifungal activities of many sulfur-containing defense compounds suggest a connection between pathogen infection, primary sulfur metabolism and sulfate nutritional status of plants. This relationship was investigated using Arabidopsis thaliana plants that were cultivated under different sulfur regimes and challenged by Alternaria brassicicola. Plants grown with 500 μM sulfate were significantly less infected compared to plants grown on 50 μM sulfate.

The genetic interaction network of CCW12, a Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene required for cell wall integrity during budding and formation of mating projections.

Background: Mannoproteins construct the outer cover of the fungal cell wall. The covalently linked cell wall protein Ccw12p is an abundant mannoprotein. It is considered as crucial structural cell wall component since in baker's yeast the lack of CCW12 results in severe cell wall damage and reduced mating efficiency.