Molecular characterization of required for killing-2: a gene required for spore killing by Neurospora Sk-3.
- 1Illinois State University
Abstract
The Sk-3 selfish genetic element in Neurospora fungi is transmitted to offspring in a biased manner through spore killing. In crosses between an Sk-3 strain and a Spore killing-sensitive (Sk-S) strain, nearly all offspring that fail to inherit Sk-3 are killed. Although a mutation called rfk-2UV, which disrupts spore killing by Sk-3, was isolated in an earlier work, its precise location within the Sk-3 element was not identified. Here, we demonstrate that rfk-2UV is a T>G transversion mutation within a protein coding gene called rfk-2. The rfk-2 gene is located on Chromosome III, and it encodes a transcript that undergoes RNA splicing and at least two RNA editing events. One of these editing events changes a UAG stop codon to a UGG tryptophan codon and allows for production of a 102 amino acid protein. Additionally, while our results demonstrate that rfk-2 is required for spore killing, they also show that it is insufficient for the process. Sk-3 is thus more complex than previously anticipated. Rather than using a single gene to produce its killer, Sk-3 requires multiple genes to kill spores and break the rules of Mendelian Inheritance.
Related
- Cloning and Characterization of a β-Propeller Phytase from the Spore-Forming Bacillus paralicheniformis T7 Strain
- Identification and characterization of two transmembrane proteins required for virulence of Ustilago maydis
- Pervasive influences of repeat-induced point mutation on single-copy functional genes reveal its evolutionary importance in Neurospora crassa
- Chaperone protein DnaK-mediated regulation of spore coat assembly in Bacillus subtilis
- Morphological and molecular characterization of interspecific hybrid pistachio rootstocks
BibTeX
@misc{sultana2026molecular,
title = {{Molecular characterization of required for killing-2: a gene required for spore killing by Neurospora Sk-3.}},
author = {S. Sultana and S. Mahmud and P. Jazireian and J. Lohmar and D. Brown and T. M. Hammond and N. Rhoades},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.07.749943},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.07.749943v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Molecular characterization of required for killing-2: a gene required for spore killing by Neurospora Sk-3.
AU - S. Sultana
AU - S. Mahmud
AU - P. Jazireian
AU - J. Lohmar
AU - D. Brown
AU - T. M. Hammond
AU - N. Rhoades
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/07
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.07.749943
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.07.749943v1
AB - The Sk-3 selfish genetic element in Neurospora fungi is transmitted to offspring in a biased manner through spore killing. In crosses between an Sk-3 strain and a Spore killing-sensitive (Sk-S) strain, nearly all offspring that fail to inherit Sk-3 are killed. Although a mutation called rfk-2UV, which disrupts spore killing by Sk-3, was isolated in an earlier work, its precise location within the Sk-3 element was not identified. Here, we demonstrate that rfk-2UV is a T>G transversion mutation within a protein coding gene called rfk-2. The rfk-2 gene is located on Chromosome III, and it encodes a transcript that undergoes RNA splicing and at least two RNA editing events. One of these editing events changes a UAG stop codon to a UGG tryptophan codon and allows for production of a 102 amino acid protein. Additionally, while our results demonstrate that rfk-2 is required for spore killing, they also show that it is insufficient for the process. Sk-3 is thus more complex than previously anticipated. Rather than using a single gene to produce its killer, Sk-3 requires multiple genes to kill spores and break the rules of Mendelian Inheritance.
ER -