Mitogen-activated protein kinases MpkA and MpkB independently affect micafungin sensitivity in Aspergillus nidulans

Akira Yoshimi, Tomonori Fujioka, Osamu Mizutani, Junichiro Marui, Daisuke Hagiwara, Keietsu Abe

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The transcriptional regulation of the MAPK mpkA and cell wall-related genes in Aspergillus nidulans differs from that of their counterparts in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The A. nidulans MAPK MpkB is putatively orthologous to the yeast MAPKs Kss1p and Fus3p. To investigate MpkB and its contribution to cell wall integrity in A. nidulans, we constructed mpkB-disruptant (mpkBδ) strains. We previously showed that mpkAδ strains exhibited reduced colony growth and increased sensitivity to the β-1,3-glucan synthase inhibitor micafungin. Like mpkAδ strains, mpkBδ strains exhibited slight growth retardation and increased sensitivity to micafungin. Although MpkB-dependent signaling modulated the transcription of some cell wall-related genes, the sugar composition of cell wall fractions was similar among wild-type, mpkAδ, and mpkBδ strains. To elucidate the relationship between MpkA and MpkB pathways, we compared conditional mutants of mpkB with those with mpkA deletion. Sensitivity testing suggested that MpkA and MpkB additively contribute to micafungin activity in A. nidulans.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)836-844
Number of pages9
JournalBioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry
Volume79
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2015

Keywords

  • Aspergillus nidulans
  • Cell wall signaling
  • Micafungin
  • Mpka
  • Mpkb

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biotechnology
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Organic Chemistry

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