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Generation and Analysis of the Expressed Sequence Tags from the Mycelium of Ganoderma lucidum

Summary

This research analyzed the genetic activity in Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi mushroom) during its early growth stages. Scientists studied which genes were active when the mushroom was growing and producing beneficial compounds. The study provides a detailed map of gene activity that helps understand how this medicinal mushroom produces its health-promoting substances. Impacts on everyday life: – Helps improve cultivation methods for medicinal mushrooms – Enables better understanding of how beneficial compounds are produced in mushrooms – Could lead to more efficient production of natural health supplements – May help develop new therapeutic compounds from mushrooms – Contributes to better quality control in mushroom-based products

Background

Ganoderma lucidum is a medicinal mushroom renowned in East Asia for its potential biological effects. The genome consortium of G. lucidum carried out an expressed sequence tag (EST) sequencing project to enable systematic exploration of genes associated with various phenotypes of the fungus. Prior to this study, only about 1000 messenger RNA sequences of G. lucidum had been deposited in GenBank.

Objective

To generate and analyze expressed sequence tags (ESTs) from G. lucidum mycelium to facilitate annotation and curation of predicted gene structures, and to provide experimental evidence supporting gene structure prediction. The project focused on the initial 30-day mycelium stage to study early differentiation and bioactive substance production.

Results

The project generated approximately 46,000 high-quality ESTs with an average length of 720 bases. These were clustered into about 8,800 expressed contigs representing about 6,000 predicted genes. The analysis identified 262 genes with alternative splice forms, including 16 genes containing cassette exons and 191 genes with retained introns. Additionally, 101 pairs of antisense transcripts were discovered. The study found 108 over-represented genes supported by at least 50 ESTs, with 44 genes showing significant age-specific expression patterns.

Conclusion

The study provided invaluable information for exploring the G. lucidum transcriptome and its regulation. Many over-represented genes in fast-growing dikaryotic mycelium were closely related to growth, cell wall synthesis, and bioactive compound production. The EST data supported the activation of specific metabolic pathways at particular stages during mycelium growth, including triterpenoid biosynthesis and polysaccharide production. The analysis also revealed insights into splice-site recognition mechanisms and antisense transcript regulation in G. lucidum.
  • Published in:PLOS One,
  • Study Type:Genomic Analysis,
  • Source: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061127
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