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Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition
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Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Journal of Fungi (ISSN 2309-608X). This special issue belongs to the section "Fungal Cell Biology, Metabolism and Physiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2024 | Viewed by 3285

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Carlos García-Estrada

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Guest Editor
Departamento de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de León, León, Spain
Interests: fungal secondary metabolism; natural products; drug discovery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Inmaculada Vaca

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, ‎Chile
Interests: fungal secondary metabolism; natural products; fungi from Antarctica
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Renato Chávez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química y Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
Interests: fungal secondary metabolism; fungal biology; fungi from Antarctica
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The fungi kingdom includes a diverse group of eukaryotic organisms able to produce a vast array of chemically diverse natural products known as secondary metabolites; these are crucial from a biotechnological point of view, and include antibiotics, immunosuppressants, pigments and mycotoxins, among others.

This Special Issue of Journal of Fungi invites researchers to contribute research articles, reviews, and opinions addressing relevant topics related to fungal secondary metabolism, including, but not limited to, the genetic analysis of biosynthetic gene clusters, the intra- and extracellular transport of secondary metabolites, regulatory circuits and transcription factors, epigenetic regulation, bioinformatics and genome mining, metabolic engineering and synthetic biology, the isolation and structural elucidation of novel fungal secondary metabolites, bioactivity assessment of pure natural products from fungi, and fungal metabolomics.

Dr. Carlos García-Estrada
Dr. Inmaculada Vaca
Dr. Renato Chávez
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Fungi is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • natural products
  • fungal secondary metabolism
  • Biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs)
  • regulatory mechanisms
  • fungal biotechnology
  • metabolomics

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 5207 KiB  
Article
Impact of tps1 Deletion and Overexpression on Terpene Metabolites in Trichoderma atroviride
by Xinyue Wang, Wenzhe Li, Shuning Cui, Yuanzheng Wu, Yanli Wei, Jishun Li and Jindong Hu
J. Fungi 2024, 10(7), 485; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10070485 - 14 Jul 2024
Viewed by 292
Abstract
Terpenoids are structurally diverse natural products that have been widely used in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries. Research has shown that fungi produce a variety of terpenoids, yet fungal terpene synthases remain not thoroughly explored. In this study, the tps1 gene, a [...] Read more.
Terpenoids are structurally diverse natural products that have been widely used in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries. Research has shown that fungi produce a variety of terpenoids, yet fungal terpene synthases remain not thoroughly explored. In this study, the tps1 gene, a crucial component of the terpene synthetic pathway, was isolated from Trichoderma atroviride HB20111 through genome mining. The function of this gene in the terpene synthetic pathway was investigated by constructing tps1-gene-deletion- and overexpression-engineered strains and evaluating the expression differences in the tps1 gene at the transcript level. HS-SPME-GC-MS analysis revealed significant variations in terpene metabolites among wild-type, tps1-deleted (Δtps1), and tps1-overexpressed (Otps1) strains; for instance, most sesquiterpene volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were notably reduced or absent in the Δtps1 strain, while nerolidol, β-acorenol, and guaiene were particularly produced by the Otps1 strain. However, both the Δtps1 and Otps1 strains produced new terpene metabolites compared to the wild-type, which indicated that the tps1 gene played an important role in terpene synthesis but was not the only gene involved in T. atroviride HB20111. The TPS1 protein encoded by the tps1 gene could function as a sesquiterpene cyclase through biological information and evolutionary tree analysis. Additionally, fungal inhibition assay and wheat growth promotion assay results suggested that the deletion or overexpression of the tps1 gene had a minimal impact on fungal inhibitory activity, plant growth promotion, and development, as well as stress response. This implies that these activities of T. atroviride HB20111 might result from a combination of multiple metabolites rather than being solely dependent on one specific metabolite. This study offers theoretical guidance for future investigations into the mechanism of terpenoid synthesis and serves as a foundation for related studies on terpenoid metabolic pathways in fungi. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition)
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16 pages, 2013 KiB  
Article
Expanding the Toolbox for Genetic Manipulation in Pseudogymnoascus: RNAi-Mediated Silencing and CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Disruption of a Polyketide Synthase Gene Involved in Red Pigment Production in P. verrucosus
by Diego Palma, Vicente Oliva, Mariana Montanares, Carlos Gil-Durán, Dante Travisany, Renato Chávez and Inmaculada Vaca
J. Fungi 2024, 10(2), 157; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10020157 - 16 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1451
Abstract
Fungi belonging to the genus Pseudogymnoascus have garnered increasing attention in recent years. One of the members of the genus, P. destructans, has been identified as the causal agent of a severe bat disease. Simultaneously, the knowledge of Pseudogymnoascus species has expanded, [...] Read more.
Fungi belonging to the genus Pseudogymnoascus have garnered increasing attention in recent years. One of the members of the genus, P. destructans, has been identified as the causal agent of a severe bat disease. Simultaneously, the knowledge of Pseudogymnoascus species has expanded, in parallel with the increased availability of genome sequences. Moreover, Pseudogymnoascus exhibits great potential as a producer of specialized metabolites, displaying a diverse array of biological activities. Despite these significant advancements, the genetic landscape of Pseudogymnoascus remains largely unexplored due to the scarcity of suitable molecular tools for genetic manipulation. In this study, we successfully implemented RNAi-mediated gene silencing and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption in Pseudogymnoascus, using an Antarctic strain of Pseudogymnoascus verrucosus as a model. Both methods were applied to target azpA, a gene involved in red pigment biosynthesis. Silencing of the azpA gene to levels of 90% or higher eliminated red pigment production, resulting in transformants exhibiting a white phenotype. On the other hand, the CRISPR/Cas9 system led to a high percentage (73%) of transformants with a one-nucleotide insertion, thereby inactivating azpA and abolishing red pigment production, resulting in a white phenotype. The successful application of RNAi-mediated gene silencing and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption represents a significant advancement in Pseudogymnoascus research, opening avenues for comprehensive functional genetic investigations within this underexplored fungal genus. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition)
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Review

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22 pages, 2797 KiB  
Review
Bioprocess of Gibberellic Acid by Fusarium fujikuroi: The Challenge of Regulation, Raw Materials, and Product Yields
by Aranza Hernández Rodríguez, Adrián Díaz Pacheco, Shirlley Elizabeth Martínez Tolibia, Yazmin Melendez Xicohtencatl, Sulem Yali Granados Balbuena and Víctor Eric López y López
J. Fungi 2024, 10(6), 418; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10060418 - 12 Jun 2024
Viewed by 628
Abstract
Gibberellic acid (GA3) is a tetracyclic diterpenoid carboxylic acid synthesized by the secondary metabolism of Fusarium fujikuroi. This phytohormone is widely studied due to the advantages it offers as a plant growth regulator, such as growth stimulation, senescence delay, flowering [...] Read more.
Gibberellic acid (GA3) is a tetracyclic diterpenoid carboxylic acid synthesized by the secondary metabolism of Fusarium fujikuroi. This phytohormone is widely studied due to the advantages it offers as a plant growth regulator, such as growth stimulation, senescence delay, flowering induction, increased fruit size, and defense against abiotic or biotic stress, which improve the quality and yield of crops. Therefore, GA3 has been considered as an innovative strategy to improve agricultural production. However, the yields obtained at large scale are insufficient for the current market demand. This low productivity is attributed to the lack of adequate parameters to optimize the fermentation process, as well as the complexity of its regulation. Therefore, this article describes the latest advances for potentializing the GA3 production process, including an analysis of its origins from crops, the benefits of its application, the related biosynthetic metabolism, the maximum yields achieved from production processes, and their association with genetic engineering techniques for GA3 producers. This work provides a new perspective on the critical points of the production process, in order to overcome the limits surrounding this modern line of bioengineering. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition)
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22 pages, 6038 KiB  
Review
The Biosynthesis, Structure Diversity and Bioactivity of Sterigmatocystins and Aflatoxins: A Review
by Wenxing Li, Zhaoxia Chen, Xize Li, Xinrui Li, Yang Hui and Wenhao Chen
J. Fungi 2024, 10(6), 396; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10060396 - 31 May 2024
Viewed by 397
Abstract
Sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins are a group of mycotoxins mainly isolated from fungi of the genera Aspergillus. Since the discovery of sterigmatocystins in 1954 and aflatoxins in 1961, many scholars have conducted a series of studies on their structural identification, synthesis and biological [...] Read more.
Sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins are a group of mycotoxins mainly isolated from fungi of the genera Aspergillus. Since the discovery of sterigmatocystins in 1954 and aflatoxins in 1961, many scholars have conducted a series of studies on their structural identification, synthesis and biological activities. Studies have shown that sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins have a wide range of biological activities such as antitumour, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiplasmodial, etc. The sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins had been shown to be hepatotoxic and nephrotoxic in animals. This review attempts to give a comprehensive summary of progress on the chemical structural features, synthesis, and bioactivity of sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins reported from 1954 to April 2024. A total of 72 sterigmatocystins and 20 aflatoxins are presented in this review. This paper reviews the chemical diversity and potential activity and toxicity of sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins, enhances the understanding of sterigmatocystins and aflatoxins that adversely affect humans and animals, and provides ideas for their prevention, research and development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fungal Secondary Metabolism, 2nd Edition)
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