Purine metabolism and differential inhibition of spore germination in Phytophthora infestans

Abstract

An analysis of the effect of various purines and pyrimidines on the germination process in three different isolates of the late blight fungus, Phytophthora infestans, revealed increased rates of indirect germination in one isolate by adenine, hypoxanthine, and the riboside of dimethylaminopurine. This observation coupled with the capacity of sporangia of the race affected (1.2.3.4) for the uptake and interconversion of purines, as demonstrated by experiments with labelled purines under in vivo and in vitro conditions, pointed to hypoxanthine as a key intermediate in the purine metabolism directly associated with spore formation and development. This enhanced germination contrasted sharply with the almost complete arrest of indirect germination that occurred when sporangia were incubated with the purine analogue, benzimidazole, or with either of the respiratory inhibitors, sodium azide and 2,4-dinitrophenol.The pattern of differential inhibition exhibited by sporangia versus zoospores upon treatment with actinomycin D, 4-fluorouracil, or cycloheximide indicated that continued translation on preformed messenger RNA may be one essential requirement for the formation and release of zoospores, whereas their subsequent germination and development may depend upon renewed transcription as well.