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Fungal evo-devo: organelles and multicellular complexity

Gregory Jedd1

  • 1Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory and Department of Biological Sciences, The National University of Singapore, Singapore 117604. gregory@tll.org.sg

Trends in Cell Biology
|October 5, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Fungal organelles like Woronin bodies and septal pore caps prevent cytoplasmic leakage and may have evolved through gene duplication. Studying them reveals fungal diversity and organelle evolution principles.

Area of Science:

  • Mycology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • Fungal hyphal filaments require mechanisms to prevent cytoplasmic loss upon wounding.
  • Ascomycota utilize peroxisome-derived Woronin bodies, while Basidiomycota use endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-derived septal pore caps (SPCs).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the evolutionary origins and functional significance of fungal organelles involved in wound healing.
  • To explore the link between these organelles and fungal multicellular complexity.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of constituent proteins of Woronin bodies.
  • Comparative study of Woronin body and SPC presence in different fungal clades.
  • Examination of mutant phenotypes for Woronin body and SPC defects.

Main Results:

  • Woronin bodies appear to have evolved via gene duplication and co-option of existing genes.
  • Fungal clades with Woronin bodies and SPCs exhibit larger and more complex reproductive structures.
  • Mutations in Woronin body and SPC genes lead to impaired fungal growth and development.

Conclusions:

  • Fungal organelles can arise through standard evolutionary processes.
  • Woronin bodies and SPCs have roles beyond simple wound repair, influencing fungal development.
  • These specialized organelles are key to understanding fungal diversity and the co-evolution of organelles with multicellularity.

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