Sequencing the genome of the powdery mildew fungus Blumeria graminis
Lead Research Organisation:
Imperial College London
Department Name: Life Sciences
Abstract
This proposal aims at obtaining an annotated genome sequence of the powdery mildew fungus Blumeria graminis f sp hordei. This fungus is an obligate biotrophic pathogen that causes one the agronomically most important diseases of barley and is a 'model' organism for the study of powdery mildew diseases in other crops. We will sequence the genome with a 7-fold coverage. The sequence will be assembled automatically. An EST library of cDNAs isolated from haustoria will also be sequenced and annotated; this will complement the existing collections and complete the coverage of all the important stages in the pathogen's life cycle. The ESTs are instrumental in training the gene finding processes that drive the annotation. The annotation of the genomic sequence will be carried out using a series of pipelines already used for other genome projects (Botrytis and tomato). The results from the semi-automated annotation will then be verified by manual curation and reviewed by specialist researchers in the sequencing consortium. The results will be placed on publicly accessible web-sites and a meeting will be convened with the world wide user community to bring train potential users, present major outcomes of the sequencing and the first annotations and discuss the results.
Technical Summary
This proposal aims at obtaining an annotated genome sequence of the powdery mildew fungus Blumeria graminis f sp hordei. This fungus is an obligate biotrophic pathogen that causes one the agronomically most important diseases of barley and is a 'model' organism for the study of powdery mildew diseases in other crops. We will sequence the genome with a 7-fold coverage of the strain DH14: one of the parental strains used to create genetic maps of avirulence and fungicide resistance genes in Blumeria. The sequence will be contracted out to a specialised sequencing centre and obtained from shot-gun sequencing genomic libraries in different insert sizes (3 and 10kb) and combined with the end sequencing of a BAC library available for this strain. The sequence will be assembled automatically using the Arachne programme. An EST library of cDNAs isolated from purified haustoria will also be sequenced and annotated; this will complement the existing cDNA collections and complete the coverage of all the important stages in the pathogen's asexual life cycle. The ESTs are instrumental in training the gene finding processes that drive the annotation. The annotation of the genomic sequence will be carried out using a series of pipelines already used for other genome projects: specifically those of Botrytis cinerea (at URGI (FRANCE)) and tomato (at Imperial College). The results from the semi-automated annotation will then be verified by manual curation and reviewed by specialist researchers in the sequencing consortium. These reviews will be pooled and discussed at dedicated consortium meetings ('jamborees'). The results will be placed on publicly accessible web-sites (e.g. http://cogeme.ex.ac.uk/) and a meeting will be convened with the world wide user community to bring train potential users, present major outcomes of the sequencing and the first annotations and discuss the results.
Publications
Spanu PD
(2012)
The genomics of obligate (and nonobligate) biotrophs.
in Annual review of phytopathology
Frantzeskakis L
(2018)
Signatures of host specialization and a recent transposable element burst in the dynamic one-speed genome of the fungal barley powdery mildew pathogen.
in BMC genomics
Amselem J
(2015)
Evolution of the EKA family of powdery mildew avirulence-effector genes from the ORF 1 of a LINE retrotransposon.
in BMC genomics
Bourras S
(2018)
Cereal powdery mildew effectors: a complex toolbox for an obligate pathogen.
in Current opinion in microbiology
Spanu PD
(2017)
Editorial: Biotrophic Plant-Microbe Interactions.
in Frontiers in plant science
Bindschedler Laurence V.
(2016)
Mildew-Omics: How Global Analyses Aid the Understanding of Life and Evolution of Powdery Mildews
in FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
Oberhaensli S
(2011)
Comparative sequence analysis of wheat and barley powdery mildew fungi reveals gene colinearity, dates divergence and indicates host-pathogen co-evolution.
in Fungal genetics and biology : FG & B
Brewer MT
(2011)
Identification and structure of the mating-type locus and development of PCR-based markers for mating type in powdery mildew fungi.
in Fungal genetics and biology : FG & B
Albaser A
(2016)
Discovery of a Bacterial Glycoside Hydrolase Family 3 (GH3) ß-Glucosidase with Myrosinase Activity from a Citrobacter Strain Isolated from Soil.
in Journal of agricultural and food chemistry
Pietro D S
(2014)
Messages from Powdery Mildew DNA: How the Interplay with a Host Moulds Pathogen Genomes
in Journal of Integrative Agriculture
Description | A. Full sequencing and high definition annotation of the Blumeria graminis f sp hordei genome. Main paper published in Science (2010) B. Creation and coordination of an effective international consortium (BluGen) which initially contributed to genome annotation and is now continuing working through regular workshops post-project in Feb 2012 (funded by New Phytologist) and July 2012 (as a satellite meeting of the IS MPMI congress in Kyoto). Next planned ones are in Copenhagen (August 2013) and Kew, London (September 2014) C. Web base-resource for access to the genome data and annotation (http://www.blugen.org/). This is regularly accessed from world-wide researchers to support work in powdery mildew genomics, biology and comparative genomics in other fields |
Exploitation Route | They already have.The immediate and the wider community has made extensive use of the data generated. |
Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
URL | http://www.blugen.org/ |
Title | Blumeria genome |
Description | Reference sequence for the powdery mildew fungi |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | No actual impacts realised to date |