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Author Spotlight: Evaluation of Entomopathogenic Fungi in Wild Monochamus alternatus Populations for Biocontrol Applications in Forest Wood Borers
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Evolutionary Perspectives on Human Fungal Pathogens.

John W Taylor1

  • 1University of California, Berkeley, California 94720-3102.

Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine
|November 12, 2014
PubMed
Summary

Advances in DNA sequencing have revolutionized microbial and pathogenic fungi evolutionary biology. Population genomics and comparative genomics reveal cryptic species, recombination, and gene flow as key sources of adaptive genetic variation.

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Microbial genomics
  • Fungal genetics

Background:

  • Microbial and pathogenic fungi evolution is challenging due to small size and limited phenotypic data.
  • DNA sequencing advancements over 25 years have significantly propelled evolutionary biology research.
  • Key areas benefiting include phylogenetics, population genetics, and comparative genomics.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To highlight the impact of DNA sequencing on understanding microbial and pathogenic fungi evolution.
  • To discuss the contributions of population and comparative genomics to fungal evolutionary biology.
  • To explore methods linking genetic and phenotypic variation in pathogenic fungi.

Main Methods:

  • Phylogenetic analysis to establish fungal phylogeny.

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  • Population genetics to identify cryptic species and recombination.
  • Comparative genomics to analyze gene content variation and gene family dynamics.
  • Fungal population genomics to investigate gene flow.
  • Reverse ecology and genome-wide association studies to link genetic and phenotypic variation.

    • Main Results:

    • A foundational understanding of fungal phylogeny has been achieved.
    • Cryptic species and unexpected recombination have been discovered in fungi.
    • Gene content variation and gene family size changes are significant sources of variation.
    • Gene flow between fungal populations and species contributes to adaptive variation.
    • Methods now exist to associate genetic variation with phenotypic variation.

    Conclusions:

    • Evolutionary biology is making profound contributions to the molecular developmental biology of pathogenic fungi.
    • Understanding genetic variation is crucial for comprehending fungal adaptation and pathogenicity.
    • Future research can leverage these advances to study pathogenic fungi evolution and development.