Plant pathogenic fungi are responsible for major crop losses. To infect their hosts many fungi, including Magnaporthe oryzae, the causal agent of rice blast and the most destructive fungal disease of rice worldwide, have evolved to form a specialized infection cell, an appressorium. Appressorium formation is regulated by signal transduction pathways notably the cAMP and MAP kinase pathways, which results in activation of phosphorylation cascades leading to changes in gene expression, including genes involved in protein turnover. However, knowledge of these post-translational protein modifications and dynamic changes in proteins during appressorium formation is limited. The ability to conduct large scale analyses of proteins in living cells as well as measure changes in protein modifications has advanced dramatically in recent years. In this project, to further define and characterize the processes regulating appressorium formation, a comprehensive quantitative analysis of relative changes in protein abundance and phosphorylation patterns during appressorium formation will be conducted. The integration of gene expression and proteomics data will contribute substantially to constructing a more comprehensive view of the cellular processes underlying this fundamental biological process.
Broader Impacts: This project will have broad impact at several levels. The research will provide cross training in chemistry and fungal biology for the graduate student and post doctoral scholar involved in this project. An individualized mentoring program will be developed for the post doctoral scholar. The PI and co-PI will develop a new colloquium integrating general concepts in biology and chemistry around the premises of this project for high school students as well as provide research experience for undergraduates. Finally, through broad dissemination of the results from these studies, including an online open-source database, the knowledge will be invaluable for driving research to find practical solutions to rice blast and other diseases caused by fungal plant pathogens.
