Fatal attraction of Caenorhabditis elegans to predatory fungi through 6-methyl-salicylic acid

Xi Yu, Xiaodi Hu, Maria Pop, Nicole Wernet, Frank Kirschhöfer, Gerald Brenner-Weiß, Julia Keller, Mirko Bunzel and Reinhard Fischer ()
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Xi Yu: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Microbiology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4
Xiaodi Hu: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Microbiology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4
Maria Pop: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Microbiology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4
Nicole Wernet: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Microbiology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4
Frank Kirschhöfer: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - North Campus, Institute of Functional Interfaces, Department of Bioengineering and Biosystems
Gerald Brenner-Weiß: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - North Campus, Institute of Functional Interfaces, Department of Bioengineering and Biosystems
Julia Keller: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Food Chemistry and Phytochemistry, Adenauerring 20 A
Mirko Bunzel: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Food Chemistry and Phytochemistry, Adenauerring 20 A
Reinhard Fischer: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - South Campus, Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Microbiology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Salicylic acid is a phenolic phytohormone which controls plant growth and development. A methyl ester (MSA) derivative thereof is volatile and involved in plant-insect or plant-plant communication. Here we show that the nematode-trapping fungus Duddingtonia flagrans uses a methyl-salicylic acid isomer, 6-MSA as morphogen for spatiotemporal control of trap formation and as chemoattractant to lure Caenorhabditis elegans into fungal colonies. 6-MSA is the product of a polyketide synthase and an intermediate in the biosynthesis of arthrosporols. The polyketide synthase (ArtA), produces 6-MSA in hyphal tips, and is uncoupled from other enzymes required for the conversion of 6-MSA to arthrosporols, which are produced in older hyphae. 6-MSA and arthrosporols both block trap formation. The presence of nematodes inhibits 6-MSA and arthrosporol biosyntheses and thereby enables trap formation. 6-MSA and arthrosporols are thus morphogens with some functions similar to quorum-sensing molecules. We show that 6-MSA is important in interkingdom communication between fungi and nematodes.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25535-1

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