The genome of Ganoderma lucidum provides insights into triterpenes biosynthesis and wood degradation [corrected].

Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi or Ling Zhi) is one of the most famous Traditional Chinese Medicines and has been widely used in the treatment of various human diseases in Asia countries. It is also a fungus with strong wood degradation ability with potential in bioenergy production. However, genes, pathways and mechanisms of these functions are still unknown. The genome of G. lucidum was sequenced and assembled into a 39.9 megabases (Mb) draft genome, which encoded 12,080 protein-coding genes and ∼83% of them were similar to public sequences. We performed comprehensive annotation for G. lucidum genes and made comparisons with genes in other fungi genomes. Genes in the biosynthesis of the main G. lucidum active ingredients, ganoderic acids (GAs), were characterized. Among the GAs synthases, we identified a fusion gene, the N and C terminal of which are homologous to two different enzymes. Moreover, the fusion gene was only found in basidiomycetes. As a white rot fungus with wood degradation ability, abundant carbohydrate-active enzymes and ligninolytic enzymes were identified in the G. lucidum genome and were compared with other fungi. The genome sequence and well annotation of G. lucidum will provide new insights in function analyses including its medicinal mechanism. The characterization of genes in the triterpene biosynthesis and wood degradation will facilitate bio-engineering research in the production of its active ingredients and bioenergy.

灵芝（又称瑞芝或灵枝）是最著名的中药材之一，在亚洲国家已广泛用于治疗多种人类疾病。它也是一种具有强大木材降解能力的真菌，在生物能源生产方面具有潜力。然而，这些功能的基因、途径和机制仍然未知。 对灵芝的基因组进行了测序，并组装成一个39.9兆碱基（Mb）的基因组草图，该草图编码12080个蛋白质编码基因，其中约83%与公共序列相似。我们对灵芝基因进行了全面注释，并与其他真菌基因组中的基因进行了比较。对灵芝主要活性成分灵芝酸（GAs）生物合成的基因进行了表征。在灵芝酸合成酶中，我们鉴定出一个融合基因，其N端和C端分别与两种不同的酶同源。此外，该融合基因仅在担子菌中发现。作为一种具有木材降解能力的白腐真菌，在灵芝基因组中鉴定出了大量的碳水化合物活性酶和木质素分解酶，并与其他真菌进行了比较。 灵芝的基因组序列和良好的注释将为包括其药用机制在内的功能分析提供新的见解。三萜生物合成和木材降解相关基因的表征将促进其活性成分生产和生物能源方面的生物工程研究。