ArticleGenome biology and evolution2023
Metagenomics Shines Light on the Evolution of "Sunscreen" Pigment Metabolism in the Teloschistales (Lichen-Forming Ascomycota).
Article in Genome biology and evolution, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers.
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21 citing papers in PubMed, 33 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Phytochemical Profiling ofPlants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Deciphering the biosynthetic pathways of lichen acids.The New phytologist · 2026Article
- Poikilohydria, polyols, and homeoviscosity: lichen metabolomic remodeling across environmental gradients.Frontiers in plant science · 2026Article
- Living in each other's pockets: insights into the life cycle ofIMA fungus · 2026Article
- Metagenomics reveals the functional profiles of soil microorganisms and nutrient cycling under long-term grass vegetation cropping.Current research in microbial sciences · 2026Article
- Paired-omics-based exploration and characterization of biosynthetic diversity in lichenized fungi.Microbial genomics · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Assembly Strategy of a Fungal Genome from Metagenomic Data:Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Bioinformatic exploration of RiPP biosynthetic gene clusters in lichens.Fungal biology and biotechnology · 2025Article
- Breaking into nature's secret medicine cabinet: lichens - a biochemical goldmine ready for discovery.The New phytologist · 2025Review
- Evolutionary genomics reveals variation in structure and genetic content implicated in virulence and lifestyle in the genus Gaeumannomyces.BMC genomics · 2025Article
- Are there conserved biosynthetic genes in lichens? Genome-wide assessment of terpene biosynthetic genes suggests ubiquitous distribution of the squalene synthase cluster.BMC genomics · 2024Article
- A Review of Laboratory Requirements to Culture Lichen Mycobiont Species.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- De Novo Genome Assembly ofGenes · 2024Article
- Discovery of New Genomic Configuration of Mating-Type Loci in the Largest Lineage of Lichen-Forming Fungi.Genome biology and evolution · 2024Article
- The genome sequence of a lichen-forming fungus,Wellcome open research · 2024Article
- The reference genome assembly of the bright cobblestone lichen, Acarospora socialis.The Journal of heredity · 2023Article
- Biosynthetic gene cluster synteny: Orthologous polyketide synthases in Hypogymnia physodes, Hypogymnia tubulosa, and Parmelia sulcata.MicrobiologyOpen · 2023Article
- Metagenomics: An Effective Approach for Exploring Microbial Diversity and Functions.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Biosynthetic Potential ofJournal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Fungi produce a vast number of secondary metabolites that shape their interactions with other organisms and the environment. Characterizing the genes underpinning metabolite synthesis is therefore key to understanding fungal evolution and adaptation. Lichenized fungi represent almost one-third of Ascomycota diversity and boast impressive secondary metabolites repertoires. However, most lichen biosynthetic genes have not been linked to their metabolite products. Here we used metagenomic sequencing to survey gene families associated with production of anthraquinones, UV-protectant secondary metabolites present in various fungi, but especially abundant in a diverse order of lichens, the Teloschistales (class Lecanoromycetes, phylum Ascomycota). We successfully assembled 24 new, high-quality lichenized-fungal genomes de novo and combined them with publicly available Lecanoromycetes genomes from taxa with diverse secondary chemistry to produce a whole-genome tree. Secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) analysis showed that whilst lichen BGCs are numerous and highly dissimilar, core enzyme genes are generally conserved across taxa. This suggests metabolite diversification occurs via re-shuffling existing enzyme genes with novel accessory genes rather than BGC gains/losses or de novo gene evolution. We identified putative anthraquinone BGCs in our lichen dataset that appear homologous to anthraquinone clusters from non-lichenized fungi, suggesting these genes were present in the common ancestor of the subphylum Pezizomycotina. Finally, we identified unique transporter genes in Teloschistales anthraquinone BGCs that may explain why these metabolites are so abundant and ubiquitous in these lichens. Our results support the importance of metagenomics for understanding the secondary metabolism of non-model fungi such as lichens.
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