| Title: | Integrated Metabolomics and Morphogenesis Reveal Volatile Signaling of the Nematode-Trapping Fungus Arthrobotrys oligospora |
| Author(s): | Wang BL; Chen YH; He JN; Xue HX; Yan N; Zeng ZJ; Bennett JW; Zhang KQ; Niu XM; |
| Address: | "State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-Resources & Key Laboratory for Microbial Resources of the Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming, People's Republic of China. Department of Plant Biology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-Resources & Key Laboratory for Microbial Resources of the Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming, People's Republic of China kqzhang@ynu.edu.cn xmniu@ynu.edu.cn" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1098-5336 (Electronic) 0099-2240 (Print) 0099-2240 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The adjustment of metabolic patterns is fundamental to fungal biology and plays vital roles in adaptation to diverse ecological challenges. Nematode-trapping fungi can switch their lifestyle from saprophytic to pathogenic by developing specific trapping devices induced by nematodes to infect their prey as a response to nutrient depletion in nature. However, the chemical identity of the specific fungal metabolites used during the switch remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that these important signal molecules might be volatile in nature. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to carry out comparative analysis of fungal metabolomics during the saprophytic and pathogenic lifestyles of the model species Arthrobotrys oligospora Two media commonly used in research on this species, cornmeal agar (CMA) and potato dextrose agar (PDA), were chosen for use in this study. The fungus produced a small group of volatile furanone and pyrone metabolites that were associated with the switch from the saprophytic to the pathogenic stage. A. oligospora fungi grown on CMA tended to produce more traps and employ attractive furanones to improve the utilization of traps, while fungi grown on PDA developed fewer traps and used nematode-toxic furanone metabolites to compensate for insufficient traps. Another volatile pyrone metabolite, maltol, was identified as a morphological regulator for enhancing trap formation. Deletion of the gene AOL_s00079g496 in A. oligospora led to increased amounts of the furanone attractant (2-fold) in mutants and enhanced the attractive activity (1.5-fold) of the fungus, while it resulted in decreased trap formation. This investigation provides new insights regarding the comprehensive tactics of fungal adaptation to environmental stress, integrating both morphological and metabolomic mechanisms.IMPORTANCE Nematode-trapping fungi are a unique group of soil-living fungi that can switch from the saprophytic to the pathogenic lifestyle once they come into contact with nematodes as a response to nutrient depletion. In this study, we investigated the metabolic response during the switch and the key types of metabolites involved in the interaction between fungi and nematodes. Our findings indicate that A. oligospora develops multiple and flexible metabolic tactics corresponding to different morphological responses to nematodes. A. oligospora can use similar volatile furanone and pyrone metabolites with different ecological functions to help capture nematodes in the fungal switch from the saprophytic to the pathogenic lifestyle. Furthermore, studies with A. oligospora mutants with increased furanone and pyrone metabolites confirmed the results. This investigation reveals the importance of volatile signaling in the comprehensive tactics used by nematode-trapping fungi, integrating both morphological and metabolomic mechanisms" |
| Keywords: | Animals Ascomycota/*physiology Dracunculus Nematode *Food Chain Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry *Metabolome Metabolomics Morphogenesis *Signal Transduction Volatile Organic Compounds/*metabolism Arthrobotrys oligospora VOCs metabolic adaptation nemat; |
| Notes: | "MedlineWang, Bai-Le Chen, Yong-Hong He, Jia-Ning Xue, Hua-Xi Yan, Ni Zeng, Zhi-Jun Bennett, Joan W Zhang, Ke-Qin Niu, Xue-Mei eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2018/02/18 Appl Environ Microbiol. 2018 Apr 16; 84(9):e02749-17. doi: 10.1128/AEM.02749-17. Print 2018 May 1" |
