Advances in genetic analysis and biotechnology of the cultivated button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus

During the last decade several major breakthroughs have been achieved in mushroom biotechnology, which greatly enhanced classical mushroom breeding. DNA-based technologies such as restriction fragment length polymorphisms and randomly amplified polydisperse DNA sequences have allowed for a measure of genetic diversity, for the isolation of homokaryons, for the determination of inheritance of nuclear and mitochondrial markers, and for the production of a genetic linkage map. The recent availability of ready-to-use and affordable DNA technologies has resulted in a substantial increase in the number of Agaricus bisporus genes that have been identified and characterized. A major breakthrough was achieved in 1996 when the first successful and stable transformation system of A. bisporus was reported. Together, the availability of an increasing number of known genes and the possibility to produce transgenic mushrooms will result in a better understanding of the molecular, physiological and biochemical processes that are essential for mushroom production, shelf life and quality aspects such as flavor, texture and disease resistance. Some potential targets for strain improvement are discussed, such as the genes involved in brown discoloration, substrate utilization, carbon and nitrogen metabolism, and fruit body development

Putative metabolic pathway of mannitol and sorbitol and in sugarcane Provável via metabólica de manitol e sorbitol em cana-de-açúcar

Until the mid 1950s, boron was believed to play an important role in the transport of sugars in plants. However, boron actually depends on sugar alcohols to be taken up by the plant. In some cases, the main sugars involved in this process are sorbitol and mannitol which form stable complexes with boron. In this study, the sequences of the SugarCane EST Genome Project (SUCEST) database were searched for enzymes involved in the metabolism of these sugars by comparing them with enzymes from other organisms. Eighteen contigs from sugarcane (Saccharum sp.) presented high similarity with 11 enzymes involved in the putative biosynthetic pathway of sorbitol and mannitol from fructose in sugarcane. Seven of these contigs had high homology with sequences deposited in GenBank.<br>Até meados da década de 50 acreditava-se que o boro tinha uma importante função no transporte de açúcares em plantas. Na verdade, o boro depende de açúcares álcoois para serem mobilizados dentro da planta. Em alguns organismos os principais açúcares envolvidos neste processo são o sorbitol e o manitol, que formam complexos estáveis com o micronutriente. O objetivo deste estudo foi procurar seqüências no banco de dados SugarCane EST Genome Project (SUCEST) que codificam enzimas participantes na via metabólica destes açúcares através da comparação de enzimas de outros organismos. Dezoito "contigs" de cana-de-açúcar (Saccharum sp.) apresentaram similaridade com onze seqüências de enzimas que compõem a provável via metabólica de sorbitol e manitol a partir de frutose. Destes "contigs", sete apresentaram uma alta similaridade entre as seqüências depositadas no GenBank