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Eukaryotic Cell, December 2008, p. 2052-2060, Vol. 7, No. 12
1535-9778/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/EC.00224-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

H3K9 Methylation Regulates Growth and Development in Aspergillus fumigatus{triangledown}

Jonathan M. Palmer,1,{dagger} Robyn M. Perrin,1,{dagger} Taylor R. T. Dagenais,2 and Nancy P. Keller1,2,3*

Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin,1 Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin,2 Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin3

Received 9 July 2008/ Accepted 2 October 2008

In most species, chromatin remodeling mediates critical biological processes ranging from development to disease states. In fungi within the genus Aspergillus, chromatin remodeling may regulate expression of metabolic gene clusters, but other processes regulated by chromatin structure remain to be elucidated. In many eukaryotic species, methylation of lysine 9 of histone 3 (H3K9) is a hallmark of heterochromatin formation and subsequent gene silencing. The sole H3K9 methyltransferase in Schizosaccharomyces pombe is Clr4. We report that disruption of the Clr4 homolog in the pathogenic mold Aspergillus fumigatus (ClrD), which is involved in both mono- and trimethylation of H3K9, results in several growth abnormalities. Developmental defects in {Delta}AfclrD include reduction in radial growth, reduction in conidial production, and delayed conidiation after developmental competence mediated by delayed expression of brlA, the master regulator of conidiophore development. Sensitivity of {Delta}AfclrD to 6-azauracil suggests that ClrD influences transcriptional processing in A. fumigatus. Despite growth abnormalities, macrophage assays suggest ClrD may be dispensable for host interactions.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: 3467 Microbial Sciences Building, 1550 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706. Phone: (608) 262-9795. Fax: (608) 263-2626. E-mail: npkeller{at}wisc.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 10 October 2008.

{dagger} J.M.P. and R.M.P. contributed equally to this work.

Eukaryotic Cell, December 2008, p. 2052-2060, Vol. 7, No. 12
1535-9778/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/EC.00224-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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