This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Wang, C.
Right arrow Articles by St Leger, R. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Wang, C.
Right arrow Articles by St Leger, R. J.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Eukaryotic Cell, May 2007, p. 808-816, Vol. 6, No. 5
1535-9778/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/EC.00409-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

The MAD1 Adhesin of Metarhizium anisopliae Links Adhesion with Blastospore Production and Virulence to Insects, and the MAD2 Adhesin Enables Attachment to Plants{triangledown}

Chengshu Wang1,2 and Raymond J. St Leger2*

Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China,1 Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 207422

Received 28 December 2006/ Accepted 20 February 2007

Metarhizium anisopliae is a fungus of considerable metabolic and ecological versatility, being a potent insect pathogen that can also colonize plant roots. The mechanistic details of these interactions are unresolved. We provide evidence that M. anisopliae adheres to insects and plants using two different proteins, MAD1 and MAD2, that are differentially induced in insect hemolymph and plant root exudates, respectively, and produce regional localization of adhesive conidial surfaces. Expression of Mad1 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae allowed this yeast to adhere to insect cuticle. Expression of Mad2 caused yeast cells to adhere to a plant surface. Our study demonstrated that as well as allowing adhesion to insects, MAD1 at the surface of M. anisopliae conidia or blastospores is required to orientate the cytoskeleton and stimulate the expression of genes involved in the cell cycle. Consequently, the disruption of Mad1 in M. anisopliae delayed germination, suppressed blastospore formation, and greatly reduced virulence to caterpillars. The disruption of Mad2 blocked the adhesion of M. anisopliae to plant epidermis but had no effects on fungal differentiation and entomopathogenicity. Thus, regulation, localization, and specificity control the functional distinction between Mad1 and Mad2 and enable M. anisopliae cells to adapt their adhesive properties to different habitats.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Entomology, 4112 Plant Science Building, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-4454. Phone: (301) 405-5402. Fax: (301) 314-9290. E-mail: stleger{at}umd.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 2 March 2007.

Eukaryotic Cell, May 2007, p. 808-816, Vol. 6, No. 5
1535-9778/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/EC.00409-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Zhang, Y., Zhao, J., Fang, W., Zhang, J., Luo, Z., Zhang, M., Fan, Y., Pei, Y. (2009). Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase hog1 in the Entomopathogenic Fungus Beauveria bassiana Regulates Environmental Stress Responses and Virulence to Insects. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 3787-3795 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Wang, C., Duan, Z., St. Leger, R. J. (2008). MOS1 Osmosensor of Metarhizium anisopliae Is Required for Adaptation to Insect Host Hemolymph. Eukaryot Cell 7: 302-309 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»