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Related Experiment Videos

Mycocin production in Cryptococcus aquaticus.

Ilona Pfeiffer1, Wladyslav I Golubev, Zoltán Farkas

  • 1Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary. pfeiffer@bio.u-szeged.hu

Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek
|February 11, 2005
PubMed
Summary

Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) viruses in Cryptococcus aquaticus produce mycocins, toxins that kill related fungi. Loss of these dsRNA viruses renders the yeast non-toxic and sensitive to its own mycocin.

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Area of Science:

  • Mycology
  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Mycocins are protein toxins produced by yeasts, often associated with double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) viruses.
  • Cryptococcus aquaticus is known to secrete mycocins, but the specific viral agents and their mechanisms remain incompletely understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To isolate and characterize the dsRNA viruses responsible for mycocin production in Cryptococcus aquaticus.
  • To investigate the role of these dsRNA viruses in mycocinogenicity and self-toxicity.
  • To explore the host range of the mycocin and the genetic relatedness of dsRNA viruses from various fungal species.

Main Methods:

  • Isolation of dsRNA viruses from mycocin-secreting Cryptococcus aquaticus strains.
  • Generation of a dsRNA-deficient mutant strain.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Assays to determine mycocin production, toxicity, and fungal sensitivity.
  • Hybridization experiments to assess genomic homology between dsRNA viruses from different fungal species.

    • Main Results:

    • Double-stranded RNA viruses (approximately 35 nm) were successfully isolated from a mycocin-secreting Cryptococcus aquaticus strain.
    • A derivative strain lacking small dsRNA was non-mycocinogenic and sensitive to its own mycocin.
    • The mycocin exhibited a restricted killing pattern, primarily affecting species within the Cystofilobasidiales clade.
    • Despite variations in genome size and mycocin activity, dsRNA viruses from multiple fungal species (including Cryptococcus aquaticus, Cystofilobasidium spp., Trichosporon pullulans, and Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous) showed genomic homology.

    Conclusions:

    • Double-stranded RNA viruses are essential for mycocin production and self-resistance in Cryptococcus aquaticus.
    • Mycocin activity is specific to certain fungal groups, suggesting co-evolutionary relationships.
    • A conserved genomic structure exists among dsRNA viruses from diverse mycocin-producing yeasts, indicating a shared evolutionary origin or functional constraints.