A genome-wide analysis of parasitic fitness in the Dutch elm disease fungus Ophiostoma novo-ulmi

荷兰榆树病真菌 Ophiostoma novo-ulmi 寄生适应性的全基因组分析

• 批准号: 105519-2013
• 负责人: Bernier, Louis
• 金额: $ 2.91万
• 依托单位: Université Laval
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=569071
• 关键词: genome; wide; analysis; parasitic; fitness

More than one billion elms have been killed by two successive pandemics of Dutch elm disease (DED) since the early 20th century. The highly aggressive fungus Ophiostoma novo-ulmi is responsible for the current DED pandemic and has had a dramatic impact on populations of Ulmus americana, the most widespread native elm species in North America. Understanding the genetic basis of the host-pathogen interaction leading to DED is basic to developing control methods involving manipulation of the pathogen or its host. The general objective of the proposed research is to identify, characterize and manipulate genes that contribute to overall parasitic fitness in O. novo-ulmi. More specifically, we are targeting genes involved in pathogenicity, as well as genes that control the transition between the two growth forms (yeast and mycelium) observed in the DED fungi when they develop in their host. The proposed research takes advantage of the expertise and resources we have developed over the years in the analysis of O. novo-ulmi. These include 1) maintenance of an extensive collection of field isolates of DED fungi from around the world; 2) recovery of O. novo-ulmi mutants with altered fitness; 3) inoculation procedures under controlled environmental conditions for identifying mutants with reduced virulence; 4) methods for monitoring gene expression in DED fungi under different experimental conditions; and 5) access to the full genome sequence of O. novo-ulmi. We will use the latest genomic techniques (including Next Generation Sequencing) in an extensive search for genes that contribute making O. novo-ulmi such a successful pathogen. The significance of the proposed work is that once genes that contribute to parasitic fitness of O. novo-ulmi are identified and characterized, it becomes possible to propose and develop new ways to interrupt the life cycle of the pathogen, in order to protect the remaining elm populations in North America.

自 20 世纪初以来，连续两次流行的荷兰榆树病 (DED) 已导致超过 10 亿棵榆树死亡。高度侵袭性的真菌新乌尔米蛇口菌 (Ophiostoma novo-ulmi) 是当前 DED 大流行的罪魁祸首，并对北美最广泛分布的本土榆树物种美洲榆 (Ulmus americana) 的种群产生了巨大影响。了解导致 DED 的宿主-病原体相互作用的遗传基础是开发涉及操纵病原体或其宿主的控制方法的基础。拟议研究的总体目标是识别、表征和操纵有助于 O. novo-ulmi 整体寄生适应性的基因。更具体地说，我们的目标是涉及致病性的基因，以及控制 DED 真菌在宿主中发育时观察到的两种生长形式（酵母和菌丝体）之间转变的基因。 拟议的研究利用了我们多年来在 O. novo-ulmi 分析中积累的专业知识和资源。其中包括 1) 维护来自世界各地的 DED 真菌的广泛野外分离株； 2)恢复适应度改变的O. novo-ulmi突变体； 3) 在受控环境条件下的接种程序，用于鉴定毒力降低的突变体； 4）不同实验条件下DED真菌基因表达监测方法； 5) 获取 O. novo-ulmi 的完整基因组序列。我们将使用最新的基因组技术（包括下一代测序）广泛寻找有助于 O. novo-ulmi 如此成功的病原体的基因。 这项工作的意义在于，一旦鉴定和表征了有助于 O. novo-ulmi 寄生适应性的基因，就有可能提出和开发新的方法来中断病原体的生命周期，以保护剩余的病原体。北美洲的榆树种群。