Ralstonia solanacearum lipopeptide induces chlamydospore development in fungi and facilitates bacterial entry into fungal tissues.

ABSTRACT: Ralstonia solanacearum is a globally distributed soil-borne plant pathogenic bacterium, which shares a broad ecological range with many plant- and soil-associated fungi. We sought to determine if R. solanacearum chemical communication directs symbiotic development of polymicrobial consortia. R. solanacearum produced a diffusible metabolite that induced conserved morphological differentiation in 34 species of fungi across three diverse taxa (Ascomycetes, Basidiomycetes and Zygomycetes). Fungi exposed to this metabolite formed chlamydospores, survival structures with thickened cell walls. Some chlamydospores internally harbored R. solanacearum, indicating a newly described endofungal lifestyle for this important plant pathogen. Using imaging mass spectrometry and peptidogenomics, we identifi

SUBMITTER: Spraker JE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4989320 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature