Exploring Mitogenomes Diversity of Fusarium musae from Banana Fruits and Human Patients
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Luca Degradi1, Valeria Tava1, Anna Prigitano2
1Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Science (DeFENS), University of Milan, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milan, Italy.
Abstract:
Fusarium musae has recently been described as a cross-kingdom pathogen causing post-harvest disease in bananas and systemic and superficial infection in humans. The taxonomic identity of fungal cross-kingdom pathogens is essential for confirming the identification of the species on distant infected hosts. Understanding the level of variability within the species is essential to decipher the population homogeneity infecting human and plant hosts. In order to verify that F. musae strains isolated from fruits and patients are part of a common population and to estimate their overall diversity, we assembled, annotated and explored the diversity of the mitogenomes of 18 F. musae strains obtained from banana fruits and human patients. The mitogenomes showed a high level of similarity among strains with different hosts' origins, with sizes ranging from 56,493 to 59,256 bp. All contained 27 tRNA genes and 14 protein-coding genes, rps3 protein, and small and large ribosomal subunits (rns and rnl). Variations in the number of endonucleases were detected. A comparison of mitochondrial endonucleases distribution with a diverse set of Fusarium mitogenomes allowed us to specifically discriminate F. musae from its sister species F. verticillioides and the other Fusarium species. Despite the diversity in F. musae mitochondria, strains from bananas and strains from human patients group together, indirectly confirming F. musae as a cross-kingdom pathogen.
Insights
Fusarium musae, a cross-kingdom pathogen infecting bananas and humans, shows high mitochondrial genome similarity across hosts. This confirms its common population and diversity, aiding in species identification and understanding host interactions.
Area of Science:
- Mycology
- Genomics
- Pathogen Identification
Background:
- Fusarium musae is a recently identified cross-kingdom pathogen affecting bananas and humans.
- Accurate taxonomic identification is crucial for understanding fungal pathogens infecting diverse hosts.
- Assessing genetic variability within F. musae is key to understanding its population structure across plant and human hosts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To verify if F. musae strains from banana fruits and human patients belong to a common population.
- To analyze the genetic diversity within F. musae using mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes).
- To differentiate F. musae from related Fusarium species based on mitogenomic characteristics.
Main Methods:
- Assembly, annotation, and diversity exploration of 18 F. musae mitogenomes from banana and human isolates.
- Comparative analysis of mitogenome size, gene content, and endonuclease variations.
- Phylogenetic comparison of F. musae mitogenomes with other Fusarium species.
Main Results:
- Mitogenomes of F. musae strains exhibited high similarity across different host origins (banana and human).
- All analyzed mitogenomes contained 27 tRNA and 14 protein-coding genes, including rps3, rns, and rnl.
- Variations in mitochondrial endonuclease content allowed specific discrimination of F. musae from F. verticillioides and other Fusarium species.
- F. musae strains from both banana and human hosts clustered together in phylogenetic analyses.
Conclusions:
- The study confirms F. musae strains from banana and human hosts form a common, genetically diverse population.
- Mitogenome analysis provides a reliable method for identifying and differentiating F. musae.
- The findings indirectly support F. musae's role as a significant cross-kingdom pathogen.
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