RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Evolution within the fungal genus Verticillium is characterized by chromosomal rearrangement and gene loss JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 164665 DO 10.1101/164665 A1 Xiaoqian Shi-Kunne A1 Luigi Faino A1 Grardy C.M. van den Berg A1 Bart P.H.J. Thomma A1 Michael F. Seidl YR 2017 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/07/17/164665.abstract AB The fungal genus Verticillium contains ten species, some of which are notorious plant pathogens causing vascular wilt diseases in host plants, while others are known as saprophytes and opportunistic plant pathogens. Whereas the genome of V. dahliae, the most notorious plan pathogen of the genus, has been well characterized, evolution and speciation of other members of the genus received little attention thus far. Here, we sequenced the genomes of the nine haploid Verticillium spp. to study evolutionary trajectories of their divergence from a last common ancestor. Frequent occurrence of chromosomal rearrangement and gene family loss was identified. In addition to ~11,000 core genes that are shared among all species, only 200-600 species-specific genes occur. Intriguingly, these species-specific genes show different features than core genes.