A Homeobox Transcription Factor UvHOX2 Regulates Chlamydospore Formation, Conidiogenesis, and Pathogenicity in Ustilaginoidea virens.

ABSTRACT: Rice false smut fungus (teleomorph: Villosiclava virens; anamorph: Ustilaginoidea virens) can generate chlamydospores and survive winter under field conditions. The chlamydospore is considered as an important infection source of the disease. However, little is known about the regulatory mechanism of the chlamydospore production. In this study, we identified a defective homeobox transcription factor (designated as UvHOX2) gene in a U. virens random insertional mutant B-766 that could not form chlamydospores. To confirm the regulatory function of UvHOX2, an Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation- and CRISPR/Cas9- based targeted gene replacement method was developed. The UvHox2 deletion mutants completely failed to produce chlamydospores, showed r

SUBMITTER: Yu J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6596325 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature