Dian Zheng

The role of two GLYCOALKALOID METABOLISM genes in α-tomatine biosynthesis and basal defense in tomato https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.02.16.705890v1

Resistant Aspergillus fumigatus more commonly found in greenhouse and bulb-growing regions WUR researcher Eveline Snelders and two PhD candidates have mapped the spread of the (drug-resistant) fungus Aspergillus fumigatus across the Netherlands. While the fungus is present ubiquitous in the...

For an easier read, @w-u-r.bsky.social also published an article about the project and our main findings. www.wur.nl/en/news/resi...

Finally, these Neurospora results build on similar results some of the authors demonstrated recently in two plant pathogenic fungi. Since these pathogens are less studied than Neurospora, we have do some experiments before a more formal response. But one is coming! www.science.org/doi/full/10....

Fungal Friends - Some of you may have seen the recent preprint on chromosomes in Neurospora nuclei. I have something to say about that, but waiting while bioRxiv moderates the comment

Great work! The first success in plant pathogen! Is this sysyem also working on other non pheromone GPCR?

Can yeast help us fight fungal crop diseases?🌾

A yeast mating platform for multiplex screening of fungal GPCR–ligand interactions

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Early germline sequestration in a basidiomycete fungus In sexual organisms, inheritance of new mutations is highly dependent on the timing of germline definition. Here, we used the fairy ring–forming fungus Marasmius oreades to challenge the general assum...

It started as a master thesis project by Markus Hiltunen, and ended up in this publication in Science. What a fun project to work on! Thanks Markus - and all other coauthors, too, for a great team work! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

@zombieantdoc.bsky.social spreading the biology of zombie ant fungus in the ESEB plenary. Showing mechanisms of how fungi hijack ant behaviour to help their own dispersal.

RNAi epimutations conferring antifungal drug resistance are inheritable - Nature Communications Epimutations mediated by RNA interference can confer antifungal drug resistance and affect virulence in fungi. Here, the authors show that these epigenetic modifications can be transmitted across gene...

🚨 New paper in @natcomms.nature.com
After a constructive and rewarding peer-review process (huge thanks to our editors and reviewers) we can finally share it:
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The RXLR-EER Motif Determines an Unconventional Secretion Pathway Associated with Extracellular Vesicle Production https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.07.663508v1

Transposon activity eliminates a crucial fungal secondary metabolite cluster while preserving pathogenicity Summary ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, https://ror.org/0456r8d26, AG - 4425 Dioraphte Foundation, https://ror.o...

📜Transposon activity eliminates a crucial fungal secondary metabolite cluster while preserving pathogenicity

🧑‍🔬 Jelmer Dijkstra, Gert H.J. Kema, et al.

📔 @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social

🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

#️⃣ #PlantImmunity #FusariumOxysporum #Fusarium #Transposons #FungalGenomics #Fungi

Ever wonder how fungi hijack plant defences? Dr. Jan van Kan (Wageningen University, NL) has spent decades decoding the strategies of necrotrophic pathogens. At #PPATH2025 he will cover the molecular arms race between plants and fungi.
Botrytis • Genomics • Resistance breeding
buff.ly/mJsUvUO

There are two kinds of people in the world: those who fold the edges of autoclave tape over on itself before sticking, and monsters

Apothecium is shooting ascospores on the lids. Shiny dots are ascospores. You can see all 8 of the ascospores from a single ascus being deposited on the lid.

Botrytis cinerea apothecium is shooting ascospores from ascus!