GzRUM1, Encoding an Ortholog of Human Retinoblastoma Binding Protein 2, is Required for Ascospore Development in Gibberella zeae

Gibberella zeae (anamorph: Fusarium graminearum), a homothallic (self-ferile) ascomycete with ubiquitous geographic distribution, causes serious diseases in several cereal crops. Ascospores (sexual spores) produced by this fungal pathogen have been suggested as the main source of primary inoculum in disease development. Here, we report the function of a gene designated GzRUM1, which is essential for ascospore formation in G. zeae. The deduced product of GzRUM1 showed significant similarities to the human retinoblastoma (tumor suppressor) binding protein 2 and a transcriptional repressor, Rum1 in the corn smut fungus (Ustilago maydis). The transcript of GzRUM1 was detected during the both vegetative and sexual stages, but was more highly accumulated during the latter stage. In addition, no GzRUM1 transcript was detected in a G. zeae strain lacking a mating-type gene (MAT1-2), a master regulator for sexual development in G. zeae. Targeted deletion of GzRUM1 caused no dramatic changes in several traits except ascospore formation. The GzRUM1 strain produced perithecia (sexual fruit bodies) but not asci nor ascospores within them. This specific defect leading to an arrest in ascospore development suggests that GzRUM1, as Rum1 in U. maydis, functions as a transcriptional regulator during sexual reproduction in G. zeae.