Sexual reproduction is an important process amongst eukaryotic organisms, with one function being to maintain genetic variation. The idea that complex eukaryotic species can persist for millions of years in the absence of sex defies fundamental evolutionary dogma, yet a group of organisms known as ancient asexuals were thought to have evolved clonally under deep evolutionary time. Prominent among these are the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which are obligate plant symbionts that colonize the root cells of plants and extend their hyphae into the soil assisting the plant in acquiring key nutrients. Unlike most eukaryotes, AMF cells are multinucleate with thousands of nuclei moving through a continuous cytoplasm. Genomic analyses have identified a putative mating-type (MAT) locus within the nuclear genomes of model AMF Rhizophagus irregularis, a region that in other fungi dictates the process of sexual reproduction. Additional findings demonstrated that AMF strains carry one of two nuclear organizations. They can be either homokaryotic (AMF homokaryons), where all nuclei within the cytoplasm are virtually identical, or heterokaryotic (AMF dikaryons), where two MAT-locus variants co-exist within the cytoplasm. Despite a lack of observable traits indicative of sex, this homo/heterokaryotic dichotomy is reminiscent of the nuclear organization of sexual fungi.
My research aims to build on these findings to investigate the actual role of the MAT-locus in driving AMF reproduction. To address this, I build my thesis into three main chapters. The first chapter reviews our current understanding of AMF genetics and what drives genome evolution in these organisms. The second chapter establishes a relatively easy, inexpensive, and reproducible approach to genotype known MAT variants of R. irregularis in natural and experimental conditions. The last chapter uses experimental crossings between strains to assess cytoplasmic compatibility and nuclear exchange. I demonstrate that dikaryotic spore progenies can be formed after co-culturing two distinct AMF homokaryotic strains. Further analyses of various genomic regions also reveal possible recombination in homokaryotic spore progenies from co-cultures. Overall, this research provides new experimental insights into the origin of genetic diversity in AMF. These findings open avenues to produce genetically new AMF strains in the lab using conventional crossing procedures and provide a glimpse of the mechanisms that generate AMF genetic diversity in the field.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uottawa.ca/oai:ruor.uottawa.ca:10393/42770 |
| Date | 30 September 2021 |
| Creators | Mathieu, Stephanie |
| Contributors | Corradi, Nicolas |
| Publisher | Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa |
| Source Sets | Université d’Ottawa |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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