Journal
APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
Volume 75, Issue 11, Pages 3787-3795Publisher
AMER SOC MICROBIOLOGY
DOI: 10.1128/AEM.01913-08
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Funding
- Ministry of Science and Technology of China [2009CB118904, 2006AA10A212]
- Natural Science Foundation of China [30471174]
- First Excellent Talents of University in Chongqing
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Beauveria bassiana is an economically important insect-pathogenic fungus which is widely used as a biocontrol agent to control a variety of insect pests. However, its insecticide efficacy in the field is often influenced by adverse environmental factors. Thus, understanding the genetic regulatory processes involved in the response to environmental stress would facilitate engineering and production of a more efficient biocontrol agent. Here, a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-encoding gene, Bbhog1, was isolated from B. bassiana and shown to encode a functional homolog of yeast HIGH-OSMOLARITY GLYCEROL 1 (HOG1). A Bbhog1 null mutation was generated in B. bassiana by targeted gene replacement, and the resulting mutants were more sensitive to hyperosmotic stress, high temperature, and oxidative stress than the wild-type controls. These results demonstrate the conserved function of HOG1 MAPKs in the regulation of abiotic stress responses. Interestingly, Delta Bbhog1 mutants exhibited greatly reduced pathogenicity, most likely due to a decrease in spore viability, a reduced ability to attach to insect cuticle, and a reduction in appressorium formation. The transcript levels of two hydrophobin-encoding genes, hyd1 and hyd2, were dramatically decreased in a Delta Bbhog1 mutant, suggesting that Bbhog1 may regulate the expression of the gene associated with hydrophobicity or adherence.
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