Genome mining of Leptographium wingfieldii, an invasive species in Canadian forests, and related taxa in the order Ophiostomatales for the characterization of secondary metabolites and ribozymes
| dc.contributor.author | Zubaer, Abdullah | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Court, Deborah (Microbiology) | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Domaratzki, Mike (Computer Science) | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Smith, David R. (Western University) | |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Hausner, Georg | |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Tremblay-Savard, Olivier | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-06-13T19:39:19Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-06-13T19:39:19Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025-05-06 | |
| dc.date.submitted | 2025-06-13T03:28:59Z | en_US |
| dc.degree.discipline | Microbiology | |
| dc.degree.level | Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) | |
| dc.description.abstract | Leptographium wingfieldii is an invasive fungal species in Canadian forests which was originally isolated in Europe (France and Greece). Leptographium wingfieldii and other fungi in the order Ophiostomatales (Ascomycota) are vectored by arthropods, and they can be either pathogenic to tree species or cause blue stain on sapwood in conifer (and hardwood) species. These fungi are ecologically and economically significant due to their impact on forest ecosystems and lumber industry. Whole genome sequences were obtained from Leptographium wingfieldii and related fungi (including Leptographium procerum, Leptographium terebrantis, Grosmannia aureum, Ophiostoma minus, and Ophiostoma piliferum). The mitochondrial genomes of these fungi were assembled and found to contain autocatalytic group I and group II introns, intron-encoded homing endonucleases along with intron-encoded reverse transcriptase enzymes that have applications in genome editing. These elements contribute toward the genetic diversity observed among the mitochondrial genomes studied. The study provided information to generate a mitochondrial intron landscape, identified complex intron arrangements, and demonstrated the correlation of mitogenome expansion with the number of introns. The whole genome sequence data were also analyzed with regards to the presence of nuclear genome encoded biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). This effort identified the presence of 205 BGCs categorized into PKS I, PKS III, NRPS, RiPPS, Terpenes, and hybrid types and these could be sources for potential antimicrobials and industrially important chemical compounds. The study provides a platform for downstream biochemical characterization and heterologous expression of the identified genetic elements, facilitating their functional annotation and explore their potential for industrial applications. | |
| dc.description.note | October 2025 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1993/39115 | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | |
| dc.subject | Fungal genome | |
| dc.subject | Mitochondra | |
| dc.subject | Mobile intron | |
| dc.subject | Biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) | |
| dc.subject | Leptographium | |
| dc.title | Genome mining of Leptographium wingfieldii, an invasive species in Canadian forests, and related taxa in the order Ophiostomatales for the characterization of secondary metabolites and ribozymes | |
| local.subject.manitoba | no | |
| oaire.awardNumber | RGPIN-2020-05332 | |
| oaire.awardTitle | Introns, nested introns and intron encoded proteins in the mitochondrial genomes of fungi | |
| project.funder.name | NSERC |