Meiosis-Specific Gene Expression in the Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungus Rhizophagus Irregularis

Abstract

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are a group of root obligate symbionts that are part of the fungal sub-phylum Glomeromycotina, which provide water, nutrients, and pathogen protection to about 80% of land plants in exchange for their photosynthetic products. AMF thus act as “biofertilizers”, have a profound effect and influence on the biodiversity of plants, and play a major role in life on land. From an evolutionary point of view, AMF are a puzzling group of organisms, thought to have propagated for over 400 million years without sexual reproduction, a rarity among eukaryotes. However, this assumption is largely based on the absence of definitive observations of sexual reproduction through microscopic tools. One clue into the sexual activity of AMF is evidence of a dikaryotic-like genome organization in their multi-nucleated mycelium. The recent identification of multi-allelic mating-type loci (MAT locus) potentially places AMF among other heterothallic or bipolar species, who’s mating compatibility is determined by their MAT locus. The presence of a hidden sexual cycle in AMF is still a possibility, and recent findings on the meiotic gene content of AMF suggests an alternative narrative to how these fungi have escaped extinction for so long. Seven meiosis-specific genes (MSG) were found to exist in AMF, indicating that these fungi are likely undergoing a cryptic sexual cycle. The main goal of this research is to determine if/when MSG are expressed in an in-vitro model of AMF. To build onto this research, we established crossings between isolates with hypothetically compatible mating types, in order to determine if fusion of their hyphae can trigger the expression of MSG. Together, these experiments will assess expression at varying stages of the putative cycle of sexual reproduction and give further insight into the elusive sexual life of AMF.