AUTHOR=Guo Hao , Xu Gen , Wu Ruimei , Li Zhigang , Yan Mengdi , Jia Zhilei , Li Zhonghai , Chen Mei , Bao Xiaoming , Qu Yinbo 

TITLE=A Homeodomain-Containing Transcriptional Factor PoHtf1 Regulated the Development and Cellulase Expression in Penicillium oxalicum

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.671089

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2021.671089

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Homeodomain-containing transcription factors (Htfs) play important roles in animals, fungi, and plants during some developmental processes. Here, a homeodomain-containing transcription factor <italic>Po</italic>Htf1 was functionally characterized in the cellulase-producing fungi <italic>Penicillium oxalicum</italic> 114-2. <italic>Po</italic>Htf1 was shown to participate in colony growth and conidiation through regulating the expression of its downstream transcription factor BrlA, the key regulator of conidiation in <italic>P. oxalicum</italic> 114-2. Additionally, <italic>Po</italic>Htf1 inhibited the expression of the major cellulase genes by coordinated regulation of cellulolytic regulators CreA, AmyR, ClrB, and XlnR. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis showed that <italic>Po</italic>Htf1 participated in the secondary metabolism including the pathway synthesizing conidial yellow pigment. These data show that <italic>Po</italic>Htf1 mediates the complex transcriptional-regulatory network cascade between developmental processes and cellulolytic gene expression in <italic>P. oxalicum</italic> 114-2. Our results should assist the development of strategies for the metabolic engineering of mutants for applications in the enzymatic hydrolysis for biochemical production.</p>