Elucidating how the saprophytic fungus Aspergillus nidulans uses the plant polyester suberin as carbon source

Lipid polymers in plant cell walls, such as cutin and suberin, build recalcitrant hydrophobic protective barriers. Their degradation is of foremost importance for both plant pathogenic and saprophytic fungi. Regardless of numerous reports on fungal degradation of emulsified fatty acids or cutin, and on fungi-plant interactions, the pathways involved in the degradation and utilisation of suberin remain largely overlooked. As a structural component of the plant cell wall, suberin isolation, in general, uses harsh depolymerisation methods that destroy its macromolecular structure. We recently overcame this limitation isolating suberin macromolecules in a near-native state.

Keywords

Aspergillus nidulans β -oxidation Cutinase Long chain fatty acids Suberin Whole-genome profiling

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.7/355

Citation

Martins et al. : Elucidating how the saprophytic fungus Aspergillus nidulans uses the plant polyester suberin as carbon source. BMC Genomics 2014 15 :613.