Epigenetic and Post-translational Modifications in Regulation of Development and Mycotoxins in Aspergillus

A special issue of Journal of Fungi (ISSN 2309-608X). This special issue belongs to the section "Fungal Genomics, Genetics and Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2024) | Viewed by 1214

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Life Science, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, China
Interests: regulation mechanism of mycotoxins biosynthesis and fungal development; biological control mechanism of fungal pathogens such as Aspergillus flavus

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aspergillus is a genus which consists of a few hundred species, renowned for its abundance of bioactive secondary metabolites, many of which are important as toxins, pharmaceuticals and in industrial production. The contamination of mycotoxins produced by A. flavus, A. parasiticus and A. nidulans on foodstuffs or crop seeds, and invasive aspergillosis caused by human pathogens—primarily A. fumigatus and A. flavus—are responsible for serious health problems and agriculture economic losses.

Epigenetic modifications have been proven to participate in multiple cellular processes and suggested to be an important regulatory mechanism in the transcription of genes in eukaryotes. Recently, epigenetic modifications have also raised concerns regarding the correlation of regulating fungal biology and pathogenicity in Aspergillus spp. and other pathogenic fungi. Recently, increasing attention has been paid to the possible adverse effects of climate change on fungal aggressivity. Through comprehensive reviews, original research and novel perspectives, this Special Issue will explore recent developments on epigenetic and post-translational modifications in the regulation of development, mycotoxins and pathogenicity in Aspergillus to develop new drug targets and efficient antifungal strategies against fungal pathogens.

Dr. Kunlong Yang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Fungi is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Aspergillus
  • mycotoxins
  • secondary metabolites
  • fungal development
  • epigenetic
  • posttranslational modifications
  • regulation of fungal virulence

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

16 pages, 2883 KiB  
Article
Transcriptomic and Proteomic Insights into the Effect of Sterigmatocystin on Aspergillus flavus
by Yarong Zhao, Rui Zeng, Peirong Chen, Chulan Huang, Kaihang Xu, Xiaomei Huang and Xu Wang
J. Fungi 2023, 9(12), 1193; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof9121193 - 13 Dec 2023
Viewed by 990
Abstract
Aspergillus flavus is an important fungus that produces aflatoxins, among which aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most toxic and contaminates food and poses a high risk to human health. AFB1 interacts with another mycotoxin sterigmatocystin (STC), which is also [...] Read more.
Aspergillus flavus is an important fungus that produces aflatoxins, among which aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most toxic and contaminates food and poses a high risk to human health. AFB1 interacts with another mycotoxin sterigmatocystin (STC), which is also a precursor of AFB1. Herein, we determined the effect of STC on AFB1 by evaluating A. flavus transcriptomic and proteomic profiles in the presence or absence of STC by RNA-seq and isobaric tagging, respectively. Overall, 3377 differentially expressed genes were identified by RNA-seq. These genes were mainly associated with the cellular component organisation and biosynthesis, the synthesis of valine, leucine, and isoleucine, and the synthesis of aflatoxin. Clustered genes responsible for AFB1 biosynthesis exhibited varying degrees of downregulation, and norB expression was completely suppressed in the experimental group. During proteomic analysis, 331 genes were differentially expressed in response to STC. These differentially expressed proteins were associated with cell parts and catalytic and antioxidant activities. Differentially expressed proteins predominantly participated in metabolic pathways associated with aflatoxin biosynthesis, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, glutathione metabolism, and carbon metabolism. Notably, the upregulated and downregulated enzymes in carbohydrate and glutathione metabolisms may serve as potential gateways for inhibiting aflatoxin biosynthesis. Moreover, twelve proteins including seven downregulated ones involved in aflatoxin biosynthesis were identified; among them, AflG was the most downregulated, suggesting that it may be the key enzyme responsible for inhibiting aflatoxin synthesis. These findings provide novel insights into A. flavus control and the mechanisms regulating mycotoxin production. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop