Proteomics of two differently pathogenic races of Fusarium oxysporum

Fusarium oxysporum is a fungal pathogen of plants. F. oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans (Foc) causes fungal wilt in cabbage. Two races have been identified, with Race 2 being much more pathogenic than Race 1. Li et al. used a proteomic approach to investigate the origin of Race 2’s enhanced pathogenicity. They observed 145 proteins that differ in abundance between the two races. Proteins involved in inorganic ion transport and carbohydrate transport and metabolism were notably more abundant in the more pathogenic race, as were their corresponding mRNAs. Knocking out a gene in encoding one of these differentially expressed proteins (a glucanosyltransferase) significantly lowered the pathogenicity of both races. Sci. Reports 10.1038/srep13663