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An aspartic proteinase gene family in the filamentous fungus Botrytis cinerea contains members with novel features

Arjen ten Have^1,

¹ Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University, Binnenhaven 5, PO Box 8025, 6700 EE Wageningen, The Netherlands
² Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, PO Box 911, Cardiff CF10 3US, UK

Correspondence
Jan A. L. van Kan
jan.vankan{at}wur.nl

Botrytis cinerea, an important fungal plant pathogen, secretes aspartic proteinase (AP) activity in axenic cultures. No cysteine, serine or metalloproteinase activity could be detected. Proteinase activity was higher in culture medium containing BSA or wheat germ extract, as compared to minimal medium. A proportion of the enzyme activity remained in the extracellular glucan sheath. AP was also the only type of proteinase activity in fluid obtained from B. cinerea-infected tissue of apple, pepper, tomato and zucchini. Five B. cinerea genes encoding an AP were cloned and denoted Bcap1–5. Features of the encoded proteins are discussed. BcAP1, especially, has novel characteristics. A phylogenetic analysis was performed comprising sequences originating from different kingdoms. BcAP1 and BcAP5 did not cluster in a bootstrap-supported clade. BcAP2 clusters with vacuolar APs. BcAP3 and BcAP4 cluster with secreted APs in a clade that also contains glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored proteinases from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans. All five Bcap genes are expressed in liquid cultures. Transcript levels of Bcap1, Bcap2, Bcap3 and Bcap4 are subject to glucose and peptone repression. Transcripts from all five Bcap genes were detected in infected plant tissue, indicating that at least part of the AP activity in planta originates from the pathogen.

The GenBank accession numbers for the sequences reported in this paper are AF121229 (Bcap1), AY361913 (Bcap2), AY507155 (Bcap3), AY507156 (Bcap4) and AJ617485 (Bcap5).

Present address: Instituto de Investigaciones Biologicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, cc 1245 (7600) Mar del Plata, Argentina.

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