A MAP kinase cascade composed of cell type specific and non-specific elements controls mating and differentiation of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans
A MAP kinase cascade composed of cell type specific and non-specific elements controls mating and differentiation of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans
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DOI：
10.1046/j.1365-2958.2003.03563.x
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发表时间：
2003-07-01
影响因子：
3.6
通讯作者：
Heitman, J
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Davidson, RC;Nicholls, CB;Heitman, J
新型隐球菌是一种机会性真菌病原体，具有明确的性周期，其中交配型基因座的等位基因与毒力和单倍体分化相关。在这里，我们分析了由交配型特异性（Ste11α、Ste12α）和非特异性（Ste7、Cpk1）元件组成的保守 MAP 激酶级联。基因破坏实验表明，这种特殊的 MAP 激酶途径是交配和细胞类型特异性分化所必需的，但不是毒力所必需的。 Ste11α、Ste7 和 Cpk1 激酶被发现充当协调信号传导模块，而 Ste12α 转录因子与冗余伙伴或在分支或平行信号传导途径中发挥作用。我们的研究说明了如何从细胞类型特异性和非特异性成分构建 MAP 激酶级联，产生有助于细胞类型特异性信号传导和分化模式的途径。
Cryptococcus neoformans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen with a defined sexual cycle in which the a allele of the mating type locus is linked to virulence and haploid differentiation. Here we analysed a conserved MAP kinase cascade composed of mating-type specific (Ste11alpha, Ste12alpha) and non-specific (Ste7, Cpk1) elements. Gene disruption experiments demonstrate that this specialized MAP kinase pathway is required for both mating and cell type-specific differentiation but not for virulence. The Ste11alpha, Ste7 and Cpk1 kinases were found to act as a co-ordinate signalling module, whereas the Ste12alpha transcription factor functions with a redundant partner or in a branched or parallel signalling pathway. Our studies illustrate how MAP kinase cascades can be constructed from cell type-specific and non-specific components, yielding pathways that contribute to cell type-specific patterns of signalling and differentiation.