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Comparative genomics of beetle-vectored fungal pathogens reveals a reduction in genome size and independent evolution of pathogenicity of two tree pathogens

View ORCID ProfileTaruna A Schuelke, Anthony Westbrook, View ORCID ProfileKeith Woeste, View ORCID ProfileDavid C. Plachetzki, Kirk Broders, View ORCID ProfileMatthew D. MacManes
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/093856
Taruna A Schuelke
1Department of Molecular, Cellular, & Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824;
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Anthony Westbrook
2Department of Computer Science, University of New Hampshire, 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824;
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Keith Woeste
3USDA Forest Service Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration Center, Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907;
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David C. Plachetzki
1Department of Molecular, Cellular, & Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824;
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Kirk Broders
4Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523
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Matthew D. MacManes
1Department of Molecular, Cellular, & Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824;
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Summary

  • Geosmithia morbida is an emerging fungal pathogen which serves as a paradigm for examining the evolutionary processes behind pathogenicity because it is one of two known pathogens within a genus of mostly saprophytic, beetle-associated, fungi. This pathogen causes thousand cankers disease in black walnut trees and is vectored into the host via the walnut twig beetle. G. morbida was first detected in western US and currently threatens the timber industry concentrated in eastern US.

  • We sequenced the genomes of G. morbida and two non-pathogenic Geosmithia species and compared these species to other fungal pathogens and nonpathogens to identify genes under positive selection in G. morbida that may be associated with pathogenicity.

  • G. morbida possesses one of the smallest genomes among the fungal species observed in this study, and one of the smallest fungal pathogen genomes to date. The enzymatic profile is this pathogen is very similar to its relatives.

  • Our findings indicate that genome reduction is an important adaptation during the evolution of a specialized lifestyle in fungal species that occupy a specific niche, such as beetle vectored tree pathogens. We also present potential genes under selection in G. morbida that could be important for adaptation to a pathogenic lifestyle.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.
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Posted December 13, 2016.
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Comparative genomics of beetle-vectored fungal pathogens reveals a reduction in genome size and independent evolution of pathogenicity of two tree pathogens
Taruna A Schuelke, Anthony Westbrook, Keith Woeste, David C. Plachetzki, Kirk Broders, Matthew D. MacManes
bioRxiv 093856; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/093856
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Comparative genomics of beetle-vectored fungal pathogens reveals a reduction in genome size and independent evolution of pathogenicity of two tree pathogens
Taruna A Schuelke, Anthony Westbrook, Keith Woeste, David C. Plachetzki, Kirk Broders, Matthew D. MacManes
bioRxiv 093856; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/093856

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