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Microorganisms
Special Issues
Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles
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Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Microbe Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2022) | Viewed by 23692

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Kerstin Voigt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Jena Microbial Resource Collection, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research, and Infection Biology—Hans Knöll Institute (HKI), 07745 Jena, Germany
Interests: infection biology of Mucorales; influence of endosymbiotic bacteria on the natural product potential of Entomophthorales; systematics of anaerobic fungi; phylogeny of basal lineage fungi; evolution of the pathogenicity of zygosporic fungi
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Mohamed I. Abdelwahab Hassan

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Jena Microbial Resource Collection • PostDoc, University of Jena
Interests: interaction between Mucorales and phagocytes; infection biology of Lichtheimia corymbifera; proteomics; ligand-receptor relationships

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The majority of fungal pathogens are opportunists occurring ubiquitously as saprobes in a variety of aquatic and terrestrial environmental habitats, such as soil, dung, and decaying organic matter. Some of these fungi spread as air-borne or food-borne entities across large geographic distances. In recent years, an increasing number of reports communicate the shift from environmental to pathogenic life styles of fungi, especially of those belonging to the ancient fungal lineages. These fungal species naturally occur as saprobes, are innocuous to other living organisms, and do not directly feed on other living beings. Under certain circumstances, however, they are able to expand their ecological niches to other living organisms and to transform their lifestyles from harmless into harmful. This harm is expressed in parasitic or pathogenic interactions, which peak in the case of life-threatening infections in certain predisposed patients. Although such fungal infections are emerging, very little is known about the mechanism of transposition, relocation, and coping strategies of the causative agents and subsequent establishment of pathogenesis. To assess which fungal attributes contribute to adaptation, sporadically occurring host jumps, parasitism, and virulence, a survey of fungal species with competence to participate in environment–parasite or environment–pathogen transitions and the investigation of the underlying adaptive mechanisms are necessary on a global scale.

The aim of this Special Issue of Microorganisms is to collect articles from researchers who have dedicated their scientific life to unravelling the mechanisms underlying conveyance from natural to clinical terrains. Manuscripts covering any aspect of the transition from saprobic to either parasitic or pathogenic life forms are welcome, including parasites and pathogens of plants, animals, and humans. The major focus of this Special Issue lies on adaptation and stress response, which are indicative of the potential for lifestyle switches. Since basal lineage fungi have been neglected in the past, the submission of manuscripts on ancestral fungal taxa is of special interest and is highly encouraged.

Dr. Kerstin Voigt
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. Microorganisms 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 2700 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

  • ancestral fungi
  • basal fungi
  • derived fungi
  • endophytic fungi
  • entomopathogenic fungi
  • chytrids
  • zygosporic fungi
  • zoosporic fungi
  • evolution
  • adaptation
  • proteomics
  • metabolomics
  • transcriptomics
  • genomics
  • microbiota
  • host–pathogen interaction
  • mutualism
  • symbiosis
  • parasitism
  • host jump
  • biocontrol
  • antagonism

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 1440 KiB  
Article
Methods for Fungicide Efficacy Screenings: Multiwell Testing Procedures for the Oomycetes Phytophthora infestans and Pythium ultimum
by Demetrio Marcianò and Silvia Laura Toffolatti
Microorganisms 2023, 11(2), 350; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11020350 - 31 Jan 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3329
Abstract
Oomycetes-borne diseases represent a serious problem for agriculture sustainability due to the high use of chemical products employed for their control. In recent years, increasing concerns on side effects associated with fungicide utilization have led to the reduction of the permissible modes of [...] Read more.
Oomycetes-borne diseases represent a serious problem for agriculture sustainability due to the high use of chemical products employed for their control. In recent years, increasing concerns on side effects associated with fungicide utilization have led to the reduction of the permissible modes of action, with the remaining ones continuously threatened by the increase of resistant strains in the pathogen populations. In this context, it is mandatory to develop new generation fungicides characterized by high specificity towards the target species and low environmental impact to guarantee the sustainability, productivity, and quality of food production. Fungicide discovery is a lengthy and costly process, and despite these urgent needs, poor description and formalization of high-throughput methodologies for screening the efficacy of active compounds are commonly reported for these kinds of organisms. In this study, a comprehensive picture of two high-throughput practices for efficient fungicide screening against plant-pathogenic oomycetes has been provided. Different protocols using multiwell plates were validated on approved crop protection products using Phytophthora infestans and Pythium ultimum as the model species. In addition, detailed statistical inputs useful for the analysis of data related to the efficacy of screenings are included. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles)
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13 pages, 2676 KiB  
Article
Phylogenetic Revision and Patterns of Host Specificity in the Fungal Subphylum Entomophthoromycotina
by Lars Möckel, Karen Meusemann, Bernhard Misof, Volker U. Schwartze, Henrik H. De Fine Licht, Kerstin Voigt, Benjamin Stielow, Sybren de Hoog, Rolf G. Beutel and Jan Buellesbach
Microorganisms 2022, 10(2), 256; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10020256 - 24 Jan 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3010
Abstract
The Entomophthoromycotina, a subphylum close to the root of terrestrial fungi with a bias toward insects as their primary hosts, has been notoriously difficult to categorize taxonomically for decades. Here, we reassess the phylogeny of this group based on conserved genes encoding ribosomal [...] Read more.
The Entomophthoromycotina, a subphylum close to the root of terrestrial fungi with a bias toward insects as their primary hosts, has been notoriously difficult to categorize taxonomically for decades. Here, we reassess the phylogeny of this group based on conserved genes encoding ribosomal RNA and RNA polymerase II subunits, confirming their general monophyly, but challenging previously assumed taxonomic relationships within and between particular clades. Furthermore, for the prominent, partially human-pathogenic taxon Conidiobolus, a new type species C. coronatus is proposed in order to compensate for the unclear, presumably lost previous type species C. utriculosus Brefeld 1884. We also performed an exhaustive survey of the broad host spectrum of the Entomophthoromycotina, which is not restricted to insects alone, and investigated potential patterns of co-evolution across their megadiverse host range. Our results suggest multiple independent origins of parasitism within this subphylum and no apparent co-evolutionary events with any particular host lineage. However, Pterygota (i.e., winged insects) clearly constitute the most dominantly parasitized superordinate host group. This appears to be in accordance with an increased dispersal capacity mediated by the radiation of the Pterygota during insect evolution, which has likely greatly facilitated the spread, infection opportunities, and evolutionary divergence of the Entomophthoromycotina as well. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles)
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26 pages, 5968 KiB  
Article
Aspergillus fumigatus versus Genus Aspergillus: Conservation, Adaptive Evolution and Specific Virulence Genes
by Shishir K. Gupta, Mugdha Srivastava, Özge Osmanoglu, Zhuofei Xu, Axel A. Brakhage and Thomas Dandekar
Microorganisms 2021, 9(10), 2014; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9102014 - 23 Sep 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2345
Abstract
Aspergillus is an important fungal genus containing economically important species, as well as pathogenic species of animals and plants. Using eighteen fungal species of the genus Aspergillus, we conducted a comprehensive investigation of conserved genes and their evolution. This also allows us [...] Read more.
Aspergillus is an important fungal genus containing economically important species, as well as pathogenic species of animals and plants. Using eighteen fungal species of the genus Aspergillus, we conducted a comprehensive investigation of conserved genes and their evolution. This also allows us to investigate the selection pressure driving the adaptive evolution in the pathogenic species A. fumigatus. Among single-copy orthologs (SCOs) for A. fumigatus and the closely related species A. fischeri, we identified 122 versus 50 positively selected genes (PSGs), respectively. Moreover, twenty conserved genes of unknown function were established to be positively selected and thus important for adaption. A. fumigatus PSGs interacting with human host proteins show over-representation of adaptive, symbiosis-related, immunomodulatory and virulence-related pathways, such as the TGF-β pathway, insulin receptor signaling, IL1 pathway and interfering with phagosomal GTPase signaling. Additionally, among the virulence factor coding genes, secretory and membrane protein-coding genes in multi-copy gene families, 212 genes underwent positive selection and also suggest increased adaptation, such as fungal immune evasion mechanisms (aspf2), siderophore biosynthesis (sidD), fumarylalanine production (sidE), stress tolerance (atfA) and thermotolerance (sodA). These genes presumably contribute to host adaptation strategies. Genes for the biosynthesis of gliotoxin are shared among all the close relatives of A. fumigatus as an ancient defense mechanism. Positive selection plays a crucial role in the adaptive evolution of A. fumigatus. The genome-wide profile of PSGs provides valuable targets for further research on the mechanisms of immune evasion, antimycotic targeting and understanding fundamental virulence processes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles)
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15 pages, 31388 KiB  
Article
Arabidopsis Restricts Sugar Loss to a Colonizing Trichoderma harzianum Strain by Downregulating SWEET11 and -12 and Upregulation of SUC1 and SWEET2 in the Roots
by Hamid Rouina, Yu-Heng Tseng, Karaba N. Nataraja, Ramanan Uma Shaanker and Ralf Oelmüller
Microorganisms 2021, 9(6), 1246; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9061246 - 8 Jun 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3166
Abstract
Phosphate (Pi) availability has a strong influence on the symbiotic interaction between Arabidopsis and a recently described root-colonizing beneficial Trichoderma harzianum strain. When transferred to media with insoluble Ca3(PO4)2 as a sole Pi source, Arabidopsis seedlings died after [...] Read more.
Phosphate (Pi) availability has a strong influence on the symbiotic interaction between Arabidopsis and a recently described root-colonizing beneficial Trichoderma harzianum strain. When transferred to media with insoluble Ca3(PO4)2 as a sole Pi source, Arabidopsis seedlings died after 10 days. Trichoderma grew on the medium containing Ca3(PO4)2 and the fungus did colonize in roots, stems, and shoots of the host. The efficiency of the photosynthetic electron transport of the colonized seedlings grown on Ca3(PO4)2 medium was reduced and the seedlings died earlier, indicating that the fungus exerts an additional stress to the plant. Interestingly, the fungus initially alleviated the Pi starvation response and did not activate defense responses against the hyphal propagation. However, in colonized roots, the sucrose transporter genes SWEET11 and -12 were strongly down-regulated, restricting the unloading of sucrose from the phloem parenchyma cells to the apoplast. Simultaneously, up-regulation of SUC1 promoted sucrose uptake from the apoplast into the parenchyma cells and of SWEET2 sequestration of sucrose in the vacuole of the root cells. We propose that the fungus tries to escape from the Ca3(PO4)2 medium and colonizes the entire host. To prevent excessive sugar consumption by the propagating hyphae, the host restricts sugar availability in its apoplastic root space by downregulating sugar transporter genes for phloem unloading, and by upregulating transporter genes which maintain the sugar in the root cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles)
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Review

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25 pages, 538 KiB  
Review
Candida auris: Epidemiology, Diagnosis, Pathogenesis, Antifungal Susceptibility, and Infection Control Measures to Combat the Spread of Infections in Healthcare Facilities
by Suhail Ahmad and Wadha Alfouzan
Microorganisms 2021, 9(4), 807; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9040807 - 11 Apr 2021
Cited by 78 | Viewed by 9933
Abstract
Candida auris, a recently recognized, often multidrug-resistant yeast, has become a significant fungal pathogen due to its ability to cause invasive infections and outbreaks in healthcare facilities which have been difficult to control and treat. The extraordinary abilities of C. auris to easily [...] Read more.
Candida auris, a recently recognized, often multidrug-resistant yeast, has become a significant fungal pathogen due to its ability to cause invasive infections and outbreaks in healthcare facilities which have been difficult to control and treat. The extraordinary abilities of C. auris to easily contaminate the environment around colonized patients and persist for long periods have recently resulted in major outbreaks in many countries. C. auris resists elimination by robust cleaning and other decontamination procedures, likely due to the formation of ‘dry’ biofilms. Susceptible hospitalized patients, particularly those with multiple comorbidities in intensive care settings, acquire C. auris rather easily from close contact with C. auris-infected patients, their environment, or the equipment used on colonized patients, often with fatal consequences. This review highlights the lessons learned from recent studies on the epidemiology, diagnosis, pathogenesis, susceptibility, and molecular basis of resistance to antifungal drugs and infection control measures to combat the spread of C. auris infections in healthcare facilities. Particular emphasis is given to interventions aiming to prevent new infections in healthcare facilities, including the screening of susceptible patients for colonization; the cleaning and decontamination of the environment, equipment, and colonized patients; and successful approaches to identify and treat infected patients, particularly during outbreaks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungus-Host Interactions: Transitions from Saprobic to Harmful Life Styles)
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