Affiliation:
1. Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912
2. Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853
Abstract
ABSTRACT
This article provides an overview of sexual reproduction in the ascomycetes, a phylum of fungi that is named after the specialized sacs or “asci” that hold the sexual spores. They have therefore also been referred to as the Sac Fungi due to these characteristic structures that typically contain four to eight ascospores. Ascomycetes are morphologically diverse and include single-celled yeasts, filamentous fungi, and more complex cup fungi. The sexual cycles of many species, including those of the model yeasts
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
and
Schizosaccharomyces pombe
and the filamentous saprobes
Neurospora crassa
,
Aspergillus nidulans
, and
Podospora anserina
, have been examined in depth. In addition, sexual or parasexual cycles have been uncovered in important human pathogens such as
Candida albicans
and
Aspergillus fumigatus
, as well as in plant pathogens such as
Fusarium graminearum
and
Cochliobolus heterostrophus
. We summarize what is known about sexual fecundity in ascomycetes, examine how structural changes at the mating-type locus dictate sexual behavior, and discuss recent studies that reveal that pheromone signaling pathways can be repurposed to serve cellular roles unrelated to sex.
Publisher
American Society for Microbiology
Subject
Infectious Diseases,Cell Biology,Microbiology (medical),Genetics,General Immunology and Microbiology,Ecology,Physiology
Cited by
54 articles.
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