Transcription activator-like effectors from endosymbiotic bacteria control the reproduction of their fungal host.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

Interactions between fungi and bacteria are critically important in ecology, medicine, and biotechnology. In this study, we shed light on factors that promote the persistence of a toxin-producing, phytopathogenic Rhizopus-Mycetohabitans symbiosis that causes severe crop losses in Asia. We present an unprecedented case where bacterially produced transcription activator-like (TAL) effectors are key to maintaining a stable endosymbiosis. In their absence, fungal sporulation is abrogated, leading to collapse of the phytopathogenic alliance. The Mycetohabitans TAL (MTAL)-mediated mechanism of host control illustrates a unique role of bacterial effector molecules that has broader implications, potentially serving as a model to understand how prokaryotic symbionts

SUBMITTER: Richter I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10746252 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature