Wheat domestication accelerated evolution and triggered positive selection in the beta-xylosidase enzyme of Mycosphaerella graminicola.

ABSTRACT: Plant cell wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs) of plant pathogens are receiving increasing interest for their potential to trigger plant defense reactions. In an antagonistic co-evolutionary arms race between host and pathogen, PCWDEs could be under strong selection. Here, we tested the hypothesis that PCWDEs in the fungal wheat pathogen Mycosphaerella graminicola have been positively selected by analyzing ratios of non-synonymous and synonymous nucleotide changes in the genes encoding these enzymes. Analyses of five PCWDEs demonstrated that one (beta-xylosidase) has been under strong positive selection and experienced an accelerated rate of evolution. In contrast, PCWDEs in the closest relatives of M. graminicola collected from wild grasses did not show evidence for selection or deviation fro

SUBMITTER: Brunner PC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2774967 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature