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Molecular Interactions Between Lolium Grasses and Their Fungal Symbionts

  • Conference paper
Book cover Molecular Breeding of Forage Crops

Part of the book series: Developments in Plant Breeding ((DIPB,volume 10))

Abstract

The protection of Lolium men stems from excess herbivory is vital to the reproductive success and distribution of this and other grass species. The development of symbiotic associations between grasses and endophytes of the Epichloël Neotyphodium group represents a unique form of biological protection where host and symbiont genomes have coevolved for mutual benefit. The fungus provides protection to the host through synthesis of a range of bioprotective metabolites in return for nutrients for growth and seed dissemination. Key fungal metabolites produced by Neotyphodium endophytes in association with perennial ryegrass (L perenne) include the lolitrems and ergopeptines; two classes of compounds that are toxic to mammalian livestock. Cloning the genes for these pathways is a major challenge as very little is known about the enzymology of toxin biosynthesis and conditions for endophyte synthesis of these metabolites ex planta have not been established. However, a major advance has been the cloning of gene clusters for the synthesis of the ergopeptine, ergotamine, from Claviceps purpurea and paxilline, an indole-diterpene closely related in chemistry to lolitrem B, from Penicillium paxilli. More recently, related genes have been cloned by PCR from Neotyphodium lolii. An overview of these advances and the opportunities now available to explore the molecular interactions between grass host and fungal symbiont are presented.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Molecular BioSciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

    D. B. Scott

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  1. D. B. Scott
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Plant Biotechnology Centre, Agriculture Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

    German Spangenberg

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© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Scott, D.B. (2001). Molecular Interactions Between Lolium Grasses and Their Fungal Symbionts. In: Spangenberg, G. (eds) Molecular Breeding of Forage Crops. Developments in Plant Breeding, vol 10. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9700-5_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9700-5_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5676-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-015-9700-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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