Abstract Detail

Gene regulatory networks in fungal development and morphogenesis - towards fungal evo-devo

Huberman, Lori [1], Wu, Vincent [2], Kowbel, David [2], Lee, Juna [3], Daum, Chris [3], Grigoriev, Igor [3], O'Malley, Ronan [3], Glass, N. Louise [2].

Filamentous fungi at the buffet: The regulatory and transcriptional landscape of nutrient sensing.

Sensing available nutrients and efficiently utilizing them is a challenge common to all organisms. The model filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa catabolizes a variety of carbohydrates: from simple sugars to the complex carbohydrates found in plant cell walls. Additionally, N. crassa utilizes a variety of organic and inorganic nitrogen sources. The transcriptional network regulating these interconnected metabolic pathways is an interplay of transcriptional activators and repressors that ensure expression of only the genes required to utilize the most preferred nutrients available. We used RNA sequencing to profile the transcriptional response of N. crassa to over 50 different nutrient conditions to explore this transcriptional network and identified several instances of interactions between seemingly unconnected regulatory pathways. Combining our observations of coordinately expressed genes with promoter-binding data from DNA affinity purification sequencing of transcription factors allowed us to assign roles to uncharacterized transcription factors and improved our understanding of the role of a number of transcription factors involved in nutrient sensing. One of these uncharacterized transcription factors regulates genes involved in both mannose and amino acid utilization, suggesting an integration of nitrogen and carbon metabolism. The genes involved in nutrient sensing are highly conserved amongst fungi, so we expect that the role of these genes in N. crassa may have implications for the roles of orthologous pathways in pathogenic fungi, where accurate nutrient sensing is important for disease progression.

Related Links:
Huberman Lab Website
DNA affinity purification sequencing and transcriptional profiling reveal new aspects of nitrogen regulation in a filamentous fungus
The regulatory and transcriptional landscape associated with carbon utilization in a filamentous fungus

1 - Cornell University, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, Plant Science Building, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
2 - University of California Berkeley, Plant and Microbial Biology, Koshland Hall, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
3 - US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA

Keywords:
transcriptional networks
nutrient sensing
fungi
transcriptional profiling
DNA affinity purification sequencing.

Presentation Type: Symposium Presentation
Session: SY1, Gene regulatory networks in fungal development and morphogenesis - towards fungal evo-devo
Location: /
Date: Monday, July 19th, 2021
Time: 10:15 AM(EDT)
Number: SY1002
Abstract ID:134
Candidate for Awards:Margaret Menzel Award