Gip1 GPCR regulates two sexual-stage differentiation processes in the ascomycete Fusarium graminearum

Mingyu Ding, Wanshan Wang, Yuhua Wang, Panpan Huang, Aliang Xia, Daiying Xu, Huiquan Liu, Haitao Cui, Guanghui Wang, Jin-Rong Xu and Cong Jiang ()
Additional contact information
Mingyu Ding: Northwest A&F University
Wanshan Wang: Northwest A&F University
Yuhua Wang: Northwest A&F University
Panpan Huang: Northwest A&F University
Aliang Xia: Northwest A&F University
Daiying Xu: Northwest A&F University
Huiquan Liu: Northwest A&F University
Haitao Cui: Shandong Agricultural University
Guanghui Wang: Northwest A&F University
Jin-Rong Xu: Purdue University
Cong Jiang: Northwest A&F University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract In ascomycetes, perithecium development involves sexual differentiation processes regulated by mating-related signaling pathways and mating-type locus (MAT) transcription factors, activated by uncharacterized receptors in response to stage-specific signaling cues. Here, we show that a non-pheromone receptor, Gip1, regulates two distinct sexual differentiation processes during perithecial development in the wheat scab fungus Fusarium graminearum. Gip1 controls the formation of perithecium initials via the cAMP-PKA pathway, and regulates subsequent development, including the differentiation of peridia and ascogenous tissues, via the Gpmk1 MAPK pathway. The C-terminal tail of Gip1 is important for intracellular signaling, while its N-terminal region and extracellular loop 3 are key for ligand recognition. Interestingly, all sexual-specific spontaneous suppressors of gip1 had mutations in the FgVeA gene, encoding a component of the Velvet complex, which regulates sexual reproduction in filamentous ascomycetes. These mutations partially rescue defects in either perithecium initiation or maturation in gip1 mutants, and restore upregulation of genes important for perithecium development such as MAT1-1-2 (encoding a MAT transcription factor). Thus, Gip1 controls two early stages of sexual differentiation by activating downstream cAMP signaling and Gpmk1 pathways, which may coordinately regulate the expression of genes important for initial perithecium development via FgVeA.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-61704-2 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-61704-2

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61704-2

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().