Neurospora - Wikipedia

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurospora

Neurospora
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Neurospora is a genus of Ascomycete fungi. The genus name, meaning

"nerve spore" refers to the characteristic striations on the spores that
resemble axons.
The best known species in this genus is Neurospora crassa, a common
model organism in biology. Neurospora intermedia var. oncomensis is
believed to be the only mold belonging to Neurospora which is used in
food production (to make oncom).[1]

Contents
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5
6
7

Characteristics
Systematics
Neurospora as model organisms
Sexual reproduction
See also
References
External links

Characteristics
Neurospora species are molds with broadly spreading colonies, with
abundant production of ascomata. Ascomata are superficial or immersed,
perithecial and ostiolate or cleistothecial and non-ostiolate, hairy or
glabrous, dark coloured. Peridium membranaceous, asci cylindrical,
clavate or subspherical, with a persistent or evanescent wall, usually with a
thickened and non-amyloid annular structure at the apex, usually 8-spored.
Ascospores broadly fusiform, ellipsoidal, or nearly spherical, unicellular,
hyaline to yellowish brown or olive-brown, becoming dark and opaque at
maturity, ascospore wall with longitudinal ribs or pitted, occasionally
nearly smooth, 12 (but rarely up to 12) germ pores disposed at the ends of
the ascospores, gelatinous sheaths or appendages are absent. Anamorphs
are known in only a relatively small number of species, which belong to
the fungi imperfecti genus Chrysonilia. The type species of the genus is
Neurospora sitophila Shear[2]

Systematics
The former genera Gelasinospora and Neurospora are closely related and
not resolved as monophyletic groups,[3] thus the former genus is nowadays
included in Neurospora.[2]

Neurospora as model organisms

Neurospora
Scientific classification
Kingdom:

Fungi

Phylum:

Ascomycota

Subphylum: Pezizomycotina
Class:

Ascomycetes

Order:

Sordariales

Family:

Sordariaceae

Genus:

Neurospora
Shear & B.O.
Dodge, 1927

Species
N. africana
N. bonaerensis
N. brevispora
N. caffera
N. calospora
N. cerealis
N. crassa
N. cratophora
N. dictyophora
N. discreta
N. dodgei
N. himalayensis
N. hippopotama
N. indica
N. intermedia
N. inversa
N. kobi
N. lineolata
N. longispora
N. novoguineensis
N. pannonica
N. pseudocalospora
N. pseudoreticulata
N. reticulata
N. sitophila
N. tetrasperma
Synonyms

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Neurospora is widely used in genetics as a model organism (especially N.

crassa) because it is quickly reproducing, is easy to culture, [4] and can
survive on minimal media (inorganic salts, glucose, water and biotin in
agar).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurospora

Gelasinospora
Anixiella

The first studies of sexual reproduction in Neurospora were made by B. O. Dodge. Neurospora was later
used by George Wells Beadle and Edward Lawrie Tatum in X-ray mutation experiments in order to discover
mutants that would differ in nutritional requirements. The results of their experiments led them to the one
gene-one enzyme hypothesis, in which they postulated that every enzyme was encoded with its own gene.
Research with Neurospora is reported semi-annually at the Neurospora Meeting at Asilomar, California,
coordinated by the Fungal Genetics Stock Center. Mutant and wild-type strains of Neurospora are available
from the FGSC. The FGSC also publishes the Fungal Genetics Reports.
Important people in Neurospora research:
Bernard Ogilvie Dodge (18721960)[4]
George Beadle (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1958)
Edward Tatum (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1958)
Esther Lederberg[5][6][7]
Norman Giles[7]
David Perkins
Robert Metzenberg
Norman Horowitz
Herschel Mitchell[8]
Mary B. Mitchell[9]

Sexual reproduction
In the heterothallic species Neurospora crassa, interaction of strains of opposite mating is necessary for the
occurrence of sexual reproduction and the production of ascospores by meiosis. The genus Neurospora also
includes homothallic species in which a single individual can undergo self-fertilization leading to meiosis
and sexual reproduction. Neurospora africana is an example of such a species.[10][11] Because heterothallic
species necessarily undergo some degree of outcrossing they may benefit from the masking of deleterious
recessive alleles that express in the dikaryon or diploid stage and/or from increased genetic variability. In
contrast, homothallic species do not outcross and do not experience these benefits. However, both heteroand homothallic species derive the benefits of meiosis that include the removal of stress-induced DNA
damages by homologous recombinational repair, and the formation of stress-resistant ascospores.

See also
Ascomycota
Ascospore
Genetic variability
Heterothallic
Homologous recombination
Homothallism
Mating type
Meiosis
Neurospora crassa

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurospora

References
1. Ho C.C. 1986. Identity and characteristics of Neurospora intermedia responsible for oncom fermentation in
Indonesia. Food Microbiology 3(2):115-132 (April 1986).
2. Garcia, D.; et al. (2004). "A synopsis and re-circumscription of Neurospora (syn. Gelasinospora) based on
ultrastructural and 28S rDNA sequence data". Mycol. Res. 108 (10): 11191142.
doi:10.1017/s0953756204000218.
3. Cai, L.; et al. (2006). ", Phylogenetic investigations of Sordariaceae based on multiple gene sequences and
morphology". Mycological Research. 110: 137150. doi:10.1016/j.mycres.2005.09.014.
4. Dodge, B. O. "Crossing hermaphroditic races of Neurospora". Mycologia. 24 (1): 713. doi:10.2307/3753727.
5. Zimmer, E. M., August 1946, "MUTANT STRAINS OF NEUROSPORA DEFICIENT IN
PARA-AMINOBENZOIC ACID", MA Thesis, Stanford University
6. Hollaender, A., Sansome E. R., Zimmer, E., Demerec, M., April 1945, "Quantitative Irradiation Experiments with
Neurospora crassa. II. Ultraviolet Irradiation", American Journal of Botany 32(4):226-235 Also: "Quantitative
effects of radiation on mutation production in Neurospora crassa", Records of the Genetics Society of America,
Number Thirteen, 1944
7. Giles, N. H. Jr., Lederberg, E. Z., March 1948, "Induced reversions of biochemical mutants in Neurospora crassa",
American Journal of Botany 35(3):150-157
8. Mitchell HK, Nyc JF (January 1948). "Hydroxyanthranilic Acid as a Precursor of Nicotinic Acid in Neurospora".
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 34 (1): 15. doi:10.1073/pnas.34.1.1. PMC 1062899 . PMID 16588774.
9. Mitchell MB (April 1955). "ABERRANT RECOMBINATION OF PYRIDOXINE MUTANTS OF Neurospora".
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 41 (4): 21520. doi:10.1073/pnas.41.4.215. PMC 528059 . PMID 16589648.
10. Glass NL, Smith ML (August 1994). "Structure and function of a mating-type gene from the homothallic species
Neurospora africana". Mol. Gen. Genet. 244 (4): 4019. doi:10.1007/bf00286692. PMID 8078466.
11. Metzenberg RL, Glass NL (February 1990). "Mating type and mating strategies in Neurospora". BioEssays. 12
(2): 539. doi:10.1002/bies.950120202. PMID 2140508.

External links
[1] (http://www.fgsc.net) Fungal Genetics Stock Center
[2] (http://www.fgsc.net/asilmtg.html) Neurospora Meeting website
Neurospora strains (http://www.fgsc.net/ncrassa.html) at the FGSC
Neurospora genome projects (http://www.fgsc.net/Neurospora/neuros.htm)
Fungal Cell Biology Group (http://129.215.156.68/index.html) at University of Edinburgh, UK.
Website includes many movies and images of Neurospora.
[3] (http://www.fgsc.net/FungalGeneticsReports.htm) Fungal Genetics Reports
[4] (http://www.benchfly.com/blog/the-almighty-fungi-the-revolutionary-neurospora-crassa/)
Montenegro-Montero A. (2010) "The Almighty Fungi: The Revolutionary Neurospora crassa". A
historical view of the many contributions of this organism to molecular biology.
[5] (http://www.broad.mit.edu/annotation/genome/neurospora/) Neurospora crassa genome
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Categories: Sordariales

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