A MAP kinase cascade composed of cell type specific and non-specific elements controls mating and differentiation of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans

被引:95
作者
Davidson, RC
Nicholls, CB
Cox, GM
Perfect, JR
Heitman, J [1 ]
机构
[1] Duke Univ, Med Ctr, Dept Mol Genet & Microbiol, Durham, NC 27710 USA
[2] Duke Univ, Med Ctr, Dept Med, Durham, NC 27710 USA
[3] Duke Univ, Med Ctr, Dept Pharmacol & Canc Biol, Durham, NC 27710 USA
[4] Duke Univ, Med Ctr, Howard Hughes Med Inst, Durham, NC 27710 USA
关键词
D O I
10.1046/j.1365-2958.2003.03563.x
中图分类号
Q5 [生物化学]; Q7 [分子生物学];
学科分类号
071010 ; 081704 ;
摘要
Cryptococcus neoformans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen with a defined sexual cycle in which the a allele of the mating type locus is linked to virulence and haploid differentiation. Here we analysed a conserved MAP kinase cascade composed of mating-type specific (Ste11alpha, Ste12alpha) and non-specific (Ste7, Cpk1) elements. Gene disruption experiments demonstrate that this specialized MAP kinase pathway is required for both mating and cell type-specific differentiation but not for virulence. The Ste11alpha, Ste7 and Cpk1 kinases were found to act as a co-ordinate signalling module, whereas the Ste12alpha transcription factor functions with a redundant partner or in a branched or parallel signalling pathway. Our studies illustrate how MAP kinase cascades can be constructed from cell type-specific and non-specific components, yielding pathways that contribute to cell type-specific patterns of signalling and differentiation.
引用
收藏
页码:469 / 485
页数:17
相关论文
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