Aspergillus nidulans asexual development: making the most of cellular modules

8 páginas, 4 figuras -- PAGS nros. 569-576Asexual development in Aspergillus nidulans begins in superficial hyphae as the programmed emergence of successive pseudohyphal modules, collectively known as the conidiophore, and is completed by a layer of specialized cells (phialides) giving rise to chains of aerial spores. A discrete number of regulatory factors present in hyphae play different stage-specific roles in pseudohyphal modules, depending on their cellular localization and protein–protein interactions. Their multiple roles include the timely activation of a sporulation-specific pathway that governs phialide and spore formation. Such functional versatility provides for a new outlook on morphogenetic change and the ways we should study itThis work was supported by the Basque Government through grant IT393-10 to U.U. and by the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia through grant BFU2009-08701 to E.A.E. O.E. is a contract researcher at The University of The Basque Country. A.G. held a predoctoral fellowship from the Basque GovernmentPeer reviewe