A mutation in the Neurospora crassa actin gene results in multiple defects in tip growth and branching

Actin has a pivotal function in hyphal morphogenesis in filamentous fungi, but it is not certain whether its function is equivalent to that of a morphogen, or if it is simply part of a mechanism that executes orders given by another regulatory entity. To address this question we selected for cytochalasin A resistance and isolated act1, the first actin mutant in Neurospora crassa. This mutant branches apically and shows an altered distribution of actin at the tip. Based on the properties of this mutant, we propose a model of tip growth and branching in which actin effects tip growth by regulating the rate of vesicle flow from proximal to distal regions of a hypha, thereby controlling the tip-high gradient of cytoplasmic calcium. The actin-controlled calcium gradient at the tip is necessary for maintenance of tip growth as well as the dominance of one polarized site at the hyphal tip. The phenotype of act1 indicates that actin controls the balance between lateral and apical branching.     

Mannosyltransferase is required for cell wall biosynthesis, morphology and control of asexual development in Neurospora crassa

Two Neurospora mutants with a phenotype that includes a tight colonial growth pattern, an inability to form conidia and an inability to form protoperithecia have been isolated and characterized. The relevant mutations were mapped to the same locus on the sequenced Neurospora genome. The mutations responsible for the mutant phenotype then were identified by examining likely candidate genes from the mutant genomes at the mapped locus with PCR amplification and a sequencing assay. The results demonstrate that a map and sequence strategy is a feasible way to identify mutant genes in Neurospora. The gene responsible for the phenotype is a putative alpha-1,2-mannosyltransferase gene. The mutant cell wall has an altered composition demonstrating that the gene functions in cell wall biosynthesis. The results demonstrate that the mnt-1 gene is required for normal cell wall biosynthesis, morphology and for the regulation of asexual development.     

Role of phospholipase C in Dictyostelium: formation of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate and normal development in cells lacking phospholipase C activity.

The micro-organism Dictyostelium uses extracellular cAMP to induce chemotaxis and cell differentiation. Signals are transduced via surface receptors, which activate G proteins, to effector enzymes. The deduced protein sequence of Dictyostelium discoideum phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PLC) shows strong homology with the mammalian PLC-delta isoforms. To study the role of PLC in Dictyostelium, a plc- mutant was constructed by disruption of the PLC gene. No basal or stimulated PLC activity could be measured during the whole developmental programme of the plc- cells. Loss of PLC activity did not result in a visible alteration of growth or development. Further analysis showed that developmental gene regulation, cAMP-mediated chemotaxis and activation of guanylyl and adenylyl cyclase were normal. Although the cells lack PLC activity, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate [Ins(1,4,5)P3] was present at only slightly lower concentrations compared with control cells. Mass analysis of inositol phosphates demonstrated the presence of a broad spectrum of inositol phosphates in Dictyostelium, which was unaltered in the plc- mutant. Cell labelling experiments with [3H]inositol indicated that [3H]Ins(1,4,5)P3 was formed in a different manner in the mutant than in control cells.     

The frost gene of Neurospora crassa is a homolog of yeast cdc1 and affects hyphal branching via manganese homeostasis

The Neurospora crassa mutant frost has a hyperbranching phenotype that can be corrected by adding Ca(2+), suggesting that characterization of this gene might clarify the mechanism of Ca(2+)-dependent tip growth. The wild-type allele was cloned by sib selection using protoplasts from arthroconidia. RFLP analysis revealed that the cloned DNA fragment mapped to the fr locus. The nucleotide sequence of genomic and cDNA was determined. The deduced amino acid sequence showed homology to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae CDC1 protein, implicated in manganese homeostasis. The fr mutant was sensitive to Mn(2+), and a revertant allele whose product differs by one amino acid was tolerant to Mn(2+). Mn(2+) depletion induced the wild-type strain to hyperbranch, resulting in a morphology similar to that of fr. The fr mutant was also sensitive to calcineurin inhibitors. These results suggest that fr is involved in Mn(2+) homeostasis and point to a role for Mn(2+) in Neurospora branching.     

Phenotype of a mechanosensitive channel mutant, mid-1, in a filamentous fungus, Neurospora crassa

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the MID1 (mating-induced death) gene encodes a stretch-activated channel which is required for successful mating; the mutant phenotype is rescued by elevated extracellular calcium. Homologs of the MID1 gene are found in fungi that are morphologically complex compared to yeast, both Basidiomycetes and Ascomycetes. We explored the phenotype of a mid-1 knockout mutant in the filamentous ascomycete Neurospora crassa. The mutant exhibits lower growth vigor than the wild type (which is not rescued by replete calcium) and mates successfully. Thus, the role of the MID-1 protein differs from that of the homologous gene product in yeast. Hyphal cytology, growth on diverse carbon sources, turgor regulation, and circadian rhythms of the mid-1 mutant are all similar to those of the wild type. However, basal turgor is lower than wild type, as is the activity of the plasma membrane H(+)-ATPase (measured by cyanide [CN(-)]-induced depolarization of the energy-dependent component of the membrane potential). In addition, the mutant is unable to grow at low extracellular Ca(2+) levels or when cytoplasmic Ca(2+) is elevated with the Ca(2+) ionophore A23187. We conclude that the MID-1 protein plays a role in regulation of ion transport via Ca(2+) homeostasis and signaling. In the absence of normal ion transport activity, the mutant exhibits poorer growth.     

Phospholipase C-epsilon regulates epidermal morphogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans

Migration of cells within epithelial sheets is an important feature of embryogenesis and other biological processes. Previous work has demonstrated a role for inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP(3))-mediated calcium signalling in the rearrangement of epidermal cells (also known as hypodermal cells) during embryonic morphogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans. However the mechanism by which IP(3) production is stimulated is unknown. IP(3) is produced by the action of phospholipase C (PLC). We therefore surveyed the PLC family of C. elegans using RNAi and mutant strains, and found that depletion of PLC-1/PLC-epsilon produced substantial embryonic lethality. We used the epithelial cell marker ajm-1::gfp to follow the behaviour of epidermal cells and found that 96% of the arrested embryos have morphogenetic defects. These defects include defective ventral enclosure and aberrant dorsal intercalation. Using time-lapse confocal microscopy we show that the migration of the ventral epidermal cells, especially of the leading cells, is slower and often fails in plc-1(tm753) embryos. As a consequence plc-1 loss of function results in ruptured embryos with a Gex phenotype (gut on exterior) and lumpy larvae. Thus PLC-1 is involved in the regulation of morphogenesis. Genetic studies using gain- and loss-of-function alleles of itr-1, the gene encoding the IP(3) receptor in C. elegans, demonstrate that PLC-1 acts through ITR-1. Using RNAi and double mutants to deplete the other PLCs in a plc-1 background, we show that PLC-3/PLC-gamma and EGL-8/PLC-beta can compensate for reduced PLC-1 activity. Our work places PLC-epsilon into a pathway controlling epidermal cell migration, thus establishing a novel role for PLC-epsilon.     

Growth defect and mutator phenotypes of RecQ-deficient Neurospora crassa mutants separately result from homologous recombination and nonhomologous end joining during repair of DNA double-strand breaks

RecQ helicases function in the maintenance of genome stability in many organisms. The filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa has two RecQ homologs, QDE3 and RECQ2. We found that the qde-3 recQ2 double mutant showed a severe growth defect. The growth defect was alleviated by mutation in mei-3, the homolog of yeast RAD51, which is required for homologous recombination (HR), suggesting that HR is responsible for this phenotype. We also found that the qde-3 recQ2 double mutant showed a mutator phenotype, yielding mostly deletions. This phenotype was completely suppressed by mutation of mus-52, a homolog of the human KU80 gene that is required for nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ), but was unaffected by mutation of mei-3. The high spontaneous mutation frequency in the double mutant is thus likely to be due to NHEJ acting on an elevated frequency of double-strand breaks (DSBs) and we therefore suggest that QDE3 and RECQ2 maintain chromosome stability by suppressing the formation of spontaneous DSBs.     

Methylation of histone H3 lysine 36 is required for normal development in Neurospora crassa

The SET domain is an evolutionarily conserved domain found predominantly in histone methyltransferases (HMTs). The Neurospora crassa genome includes nine SET domain genes (set-1 through set-9) in addition to dim-5, which encodes a histone H3 lysine 9 HMT required for DNA methylation. We demonstrate that Neurospora set-2 encodes a histone H3 lysine 36 (K36) methyltransferase and that it is essential for normal growth and development. We used repeat induced point mutation to make a set-2 mutant (set-2(RIP1)) with multiple nonsense mutations. Western analyses revealed that the mutant lacks SET-2 protein and K36 methylation. An amino-terminal fragment that includes the AWS, SET, and post-SET domains of SET-2 proved sufficient for K36 HMT activity in vitro. Nucleosomes were better substrates than free histones. The set-2(RIP1) mutant grows slowly, conidiates poorly, and is female sterile. Introducing the wild-type gene into the mutant complemented the defects, confirming that they resulted from loss of set-2 function. We replaced the wild-type histone H3 gene (hH3) with an allele producing a Lys to Leu substitution at position 36 and found that this hH3(K36L) mutant phenocopied the set-2(RIP1) mutant, confirming that the observed defects in growth and development result from inability to methylate K36 of H3. Finally, we used chromatin immunoprecipitation to demonstrate that actively transcribed genes in Neurospora crassa are enriched for H3 methylated at lysines 4 and 36. Taken together, our results suggest that methylation of K36 in Neurospora crassa is essential for normal growth and development.     

Isolation and characterization of a laccase-derepressed mutant of Neurospora crassa.

Laccase from the ascomycete Neurospora crassa is an inducible secretory enzyme. Production of this enzyme is repressed in vegetative cultures but can be induced by treatment with low concentrations of cycloheximide. Isolation and characterization of a derepressed mutant, the lah-1 mutant, that is capable of producing laccase in vegetative cultures without induction by cycloheximide are described. The lah-1 mutation is mapped between nit-2 and leu-3 on linkage group I, and it behaved as a recessive mutation in a forced heterokaryon. No differences were detected biochemically or immunologically between the laccase protein produced by the lah-1 mutant in the absence of cycloheximide and that induced with cycloheximide in the wild-type strain. This suggests that both laccases (66 kilodaltons) are products of the same structural gene. Relative amounts of laccase in the culture filtrate of the lah-1 mutant were much higher than those induced with cycloheximide in the wild-type strain, demonstrating high efficiency of the lah-1 mutant in production and secretion of laccase. The time course of laccase production by the lah-1 mutant revealed that expression of 66-kilodalton laccase was repressed in conidia and derepressed during vegetative mycelial growth. This suggests that a multiple regulatory mechanism is involved in the production and/or maturation of Neurospora laccase. The lah-1 mutant may be useful for identifying genes that regulate expression of the laccase gene in N. crassa.     

Functional analysis of an endo-1,6-beta-D-glucanase gene (neg-1) from Neurospora crassa

The 1,6-beta-D-glucanase gene (neg1) of Neurospora crassa was disrupted by repeat-induced point mutations. Sequence analysis of the neg1 gene in the R12-1 mutant showed that 9 nucleotides within the coding region of the gene changed from GC to AT. The base transition of C to A at position 662 resulted in a codon. No apparent phenotypic changes were observed in the mutant, but Congo-red, SDS, and cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB), which affect fungal cell walls or membranes, markedly inhibited the hyphal growth of the mutant at a concentration that does not inhibit growth in the wild type.     

Altered Mitochondrial Respiration in a Chromosomal Mutant of Neurospora crassa

A mutant of Neurospora crassa (cni-1) has been isolated that has two pathways of mitochondrial respiration. One pathway is sensitive to cyanide and antimycin A, the other is sensitive only to salicyl hydroxamic acid. Respiration can proceed through either pathway and both pathways together in this mutant account for greater than 90% of all mitochondrial respiration. The cni-1 mutation segregates as a nuclear gene in crosses to other strains of Neurospora. Absorption spectra of isolated mitochondria from cni-1 show typical b- and c-type cytochromes but the absorption peaks corresponding to cytochrome aa(3) are not detectable. Extraction of soluble cytochrome c-546 from these mitochondria followed by reduction with ascorbate reveals a new absorption peak at 426 nm that is not present in wild-type mitochondria. This peak may be due to an altered cytochrome oxidase with abnormal spectral properties. Mitochondria from cni-1 have elevated levels of succinate-cytochrome c reductase but reduced levels of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide reduced form cytochrome c reductase and of cyanide- and azide-sensitive cytochrome c oxidase. These studies suggest that the cni-1 mutation results in the abnormal assembly of cytochrome c oxidase so that the typical cytochrome aa(3) spectrum is lost and the enzyme activity is reduced. As a consequence of this alteration, a cyanide-insensitive respiratory pathway is elaborated by these mitochondria which may serve to stimulate adenosine 5'-triphosphate production via substrate level phosphorylation by glycolysis and the Krebs cycle.     

A pheromone receptor gene, pre-1, is essential for mating type-specific directional growth and fusion of trichogynes and female fertility in Neurospora crassa

Neurospora crassa is a heterothallic filamentous fungus with two mating types, mat a and mat A. Its mating involves differentiation of female reproductive structures (protoperithecia) and chemotropic growth of female-specific hyphae (trichogynes) towards a cell of the opposite mating type in a pheromone-mediated process. In this study, we characterize the pre-1 gene, encoding a predicted G-protein-coupled receptor with sequence similarity to fungal pheromone receptors. pre-1 is most highly expressed in mat A strains under mating conditions, but low levels can also be detected in mat a strains. Analysis of pre-1 deletion mutants showed that loss of pre-1 does not greatly affect vegetative growth, heterokaryon formation or male fertility in either mating type. Protoperithecia from Deltapre-1 mat A mutants do not undergo fertilization; this defect largely stems from an inability of their trichogynes to recognize and fuse with mat a cells. Previous work has demonstrated that the Galpha subunit, GNA-1, and the Gbeta protein, GNB-1, are essential for female fertility in N. crassa. Trichogynes of Deltagna-1 and Deltagnb-1 mutants displayed severe defects in growth towards and fusion with male cells, similar to that of Deltapre-1 mat A strains. However, the female sterility defect of the Deltapre-1 mat A mutant could not be complemented by constitutive activation of gna-1, suggesting additional layers of regulation. We propose that PRE-1 is a pheromone receptor coupled to GNA-1 that is essential for the mating of mat A strains as females, consistent with a role in launching the pheromone response pathway in N. crassa.     

A new wc-1 mutant of Neurospora crassa shows unique light sensitivity in the circadian conidiation rhythm

A new clock mutant ( rhy-2) was isolated by DNA insertion mutagenesis using a plasmid that contains a region located upstream of the cmd gene in the genome of Neurospora crassa. This mutant is arrhythmic with regard to conidiation in continuous darkness but rhythmic under a light-dark cycle. After plasmid rescue from genomic DNA of the rhy-2 strain, the insertion was localized to the gene white collar-1 ( wc-1). Plasmid DNA was inserted 3' to the sequence encoding the polyglutamine region of the WC-1 gene product, and an mRNA encoding a truncated WC-1 protein must be synthesized under the control of the cmd promoter. The new wc-1 mutant, rhy-2, is still sensitive to light, although only weakly. Since the circadian rhythm of conidiation in continuous darkness is eliminated in the mutant, the polyglutamine region in WC-1 may be essential for both clock function and light-induced carotenogenesis in Neurospora.     

Phospholipase Cepsilon regulates ovulation in Caenorhabditis elegans

Phospholipase Cepsilon (PLCepsilon) is a novel class of phosphoinositide-specific PLC with unknown physiological functions. Here, we present the first genetic analysis of PLCepsilon in an intact organism, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Ovulation in C. elegans is dependent on an inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP(3)) signaling pathway activated by the receptor tyrosine kinase LET-23. We generated deletion mutants of the gene, plc-1, encoding C. elegans PLCepsilon. We observed a novel ovulation phenotype whereby oocytes are trapped in the spermatheca due to delayed dilation of the spermatheca-uterine valve. The expression of plc-1 in the adult spermatheca is consistent with its involvement in regulation of ovulation. On the other hand, we failed to observe genetic interaction of plc-1 with let-23-mediated IP(3) signaling pathway genes, suggesting a complex mechanism for control of ovulation.     

Mutagen sensitivities and mutator effects of MMS-sensitive mutants in Neurospora

7 mus (mutagen-sensitive) mutants of Neurospora crassa, which are more sensitive to the toxic effects of MMS (methyl methanesulfonate) than wild-type, were investigated for cross-sensitivities to other mutagens and inhibitors. These mutants have recently been mapped in 5 new genes, mus-7 to mus-11, and mutant alleles from each gene were checked for their effects on mutation frequencies. It was found that mutants in 3 of these 5 genes showed radiation-induced mutation frequencies similar to wild-type. These included 2 alleles of the gene mus-10, which were cross-sensitive only to UV and were the only mutants that produced some viable ascospores in homozygous crosses. The mutant of the second gene, mus-8, was especially sensitive to UV and mitomycin C and produced slightly reduced frequencies of spontaneous mutation. In contrast, the mutant of the third gene, mus-7, was not UV-sensitive but showed some cross-sensitivity to X-rays; mus-7 was highly sensitive to MMS and also to histidine, which inhibits various repair-defective mutants at concentrations well below those that reduce wild-type growth. None of these mus resemble mutants previously found in Neurospora, nor do they conform clearly to mutant types identified in E. coli or yeast. On the other hand mutants in 2 further genes, mus-11, and especially 2 alleles of mus-9, are very similar to uvs-3 of Neurospora and generally resemble mutants that are considered to be defective in "error-prone" repair. They were UV- as well as X-ray-sensitive, and showed strong spontaneous mutator effects but almost no increase in recessive lethal frequencies in heterokaryons after UV-treatments.     

The Neurospora crassa cyt-20 gene encodes cytosolic and mitochondrial valyl-tRNA synthetases and may have a second function in addition to protein synthesis.

The cyt-20-1 mutant of Neurospora crassa is a temperature-sensitive, cytochrome b- and aa3-deficient strain that is severely deficient in both mitochondrial and cytosolic protein synthesis (R.A. Collins, H. Bertrand, R.J. LaPolla, and A.M. Lambowitz, Mol. Gen. Genet. 177:73-84, 1979). We cloned the cyt-20+ gene by complementation of the cyt-20-1 mutation and found that it contains a 1,093-amino-acid open reading frame (ORF) that encodes both the cytosolic and mitochondrial valyl-tRNA synthetases (vaIRSs). A second mutation, un-3, which is allelic with cyt-20-1, also results in temperature-sensitive growth, but not in gross deficiencies in cytochromes b and aa3 or protein synthesis. The un-3 mutant had also been reported to have pleiotropic defects in cellular transport process, resulting in resistance to amino acid analogs (M.S. Kappy and R.L. Metzenberg, J. Bacteriol. 94:1629-1637, 1967), but this resistance phenotype is separable from the temperature sensitivity in crosses and may result from a mutation in a different gene. The 1,093-amino-acid ORF encoding vaIRSs is the site of missense mutations resulting in temperature sensitivity in both cyt-20-1 and un-3 and is required for the transformation of both mutants. The opposite strand of the cyt-20 gene encodes an overlapping ORF of 532 amino acids, which may also be functional but is not required for transformation of either mutant. The cyt-20-1 mutation in the vaIRS ORF results in severe deficiencies of both mitochondrial and cytosolic vaIRS activities, whereas the un-3 mutation does not appear to result in a deficiency of these activities or of mitochondrial or cytosolic protein synthesis sufficient to account for its temperature-sensitive growth. The phenotype of the un-3 mutant raises the possibility that the vaIRS ORF has a second function in addition to protein synthesis.