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Cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase is involved in morphogenesis of Aspergillus niger^a

National Institute of Chemistry, Department for Biotechnology and Industrial Mycology, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia¹
Wageningen University, Section Molecular Genetics of Industrial Micro-organisms, Dreijenlaan 2, 6703HA Wageningen, The Netherlands²

Author for correspondence: George Ruijter. Tel: +31 71 5262967. Fax: +31 71 5266876. e-mail: g.j.g.ruijter{at}lumc.nl

The cAMP signal transduction pathway controls many processes in fungi. The pkaR gene, encoding the regulatory subunit (PKA-R) of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA), was cloned from the industrially important filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger. To investigate the involvement of PKA in morphology of A. niger, a set of transformants which overexpressed pkaR or pkaC (encoding the catalytic subunit of PKA) either individually or simultaneously was prepared as well as mutants in which pkaR and/or pkaC were disrupted. Strains overexpressing pkaR or both pkaC and pkaR could not be distinguished from the wild-type, suggesting that regulation of PKA activity is normal in these strains. Absence of PKA activity resulted in a two- to threefold reduction in colony diameter on plates. The most severe phenotype was observed in the absence of PKA-R, i.e., very small colonies on plates, absence of sporulation and complete loss of growth polarity during submerged growth. Suppressor mutations easily developed in the pkaR mutant and one of these mutants appeared to lack PKA-C activity. These data suggest that cAMP-dependent protein phosphorylation in A. niger regulates growth polarity and formation of conidiospores.

Keywords: cAMP-dependent protein kinase, regulatory subunit, signal transduction, morphology

Abbreviations: PKA, cAMP-dependent protein kinase; PKA-R, regulatory subunit of PKA; PKA-C, catalytic subunit of PKA

^a The EMBL accession number for the sequence reported in this paper is AJ296317.

^b Present address: Wageningen University, Laboratory of Phytopathology, PO Box 8025, 6700 EE Wageningen, The Netherlands.

^c Present address: Dr Van Haeringen Laboratorium, Agro Business Park 100, 6708 PW Wageningen, The Netherlands.

^d Present address: FGT Consultancy, PO Box 396, 6700AJ Wageningen, The Netherlands.

^e Present address: Department of Pediatrics, Leiden University Medical Centre, Building 1 P3-P, PO Box 9600, 2300RC Leiden, The Netherlands.

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