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Updated: May 10, 2026

In Vivo Modeling of the Morbid Human Genome using Danio rerio
Published on: August 24, 2013
The b alleles of U. maydis, whose combinations program pathogenic development, code for polypeptides containing a
1Institut für Genbiologische Forschung Berlin GmbH, Federal Republic of Germany.
Abstract:
U. maydis is a fungal pathogen of corn with two forms: one is yeast-like and nonpathogenic; the other is filamentous and pathogenic. The b locus, with 25 different alleles, regulates this dimorphism: any combination of two different alleles triggers pathogenic development, whereas the presence of identical alleles results in the yeast-like form. We have cloned four b alleles (b1, b2, b3, and b4) and show that the b locus contains a single open reading frame (ORF) of 410 amino acids with a variable N-terminal region and a highly conserved C-terminal region (60% and 93% identity, respectively). Mutational analysis confirms that this ORF is responsible for b activity. The b polypeptides appear to be DNA binding proteins because they contain a motif related to the homeodomain in their constant region. We propose that combinatorial interactions between b polypeptides generate regulatory proteins that determine the developmental program of the fungus.
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