The Hos2 Histone Deacetylase Controls Ustilago maydis Virulence through Direct Regulation of Mating-Type Genes

Morphological changes are critical for host colonisation in plant pathogenic fungi. These changes occur at specific stages of their pathogenic cycle in response to environmental signals and are mediated by transcription factors, which act as master regulators. Histone deacetylases (HDACs) play crucial roles in regulating gene expression, for example by locally modulating the accessibility of chromatin to transcriptional regulators. It has been reported that HDACs play important roles in the virulence of plant fungi. However, the specific environment-sensing pathways that control fungal virulence via HDACs remain poorly characterised. Here we address this question using the maize pathogen Ustilago maydis. We find that the HDAC Hos2 is required for the dimorphic switch and pathogenic development in U. maydis. The deletion of hos2 abolishes the cAMP-dependent expression of mating type genes. Moreover, ChIP experiments detect Hos2 binding to the gene bodies of mating-type genes, which increases in proportion to their expression level following cAMP addition. These observations suggest that Hos2 acts as a downstream component of the cAMP-PKA pathway to control the expression of mating-type genes. Interestingly, we found that Clr3, another HDAC present in U. maydis, also contributes to the cAMP-dependent regulation of mating-type gene expression, demonstrating that Hos2 is not the only HDAC involved in this control system. Overall, our results provide new insights into the role of HDACs in fungal phytopathogenesis.