Characterization of the Polysaccharide and Protein Composition of Neurospora crassa Conidium, Perithecium, and Ascospore Cell Walls
Protyusha Dey, Ian Black, Christian Heiss, Liyanage Devthilini Fernando, Parastoo Azadi, Piotr Shtyk, Stephen J. Free · 2026
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Description
Protyusha Dey and co-authors map how the cell wall of the fungus Neurospora crassa is rebuilt at each stage of its life. They profiled walls from four forms: the feeding filaments, asexual spores called conidia, the female mating bodies called perithecia, and sexual ascospores. This species changes shape again and again, which makes it a clean case for tracking wall chemistry.
All four walls held beta-1,3-glucan and a mixed glucan called lichenin, but the shares swung widely. The beta glucan ruled in filament walls, while the mixed glucan led in perithecia and ascospores. Conidium and perithecium walls also held alpha-1,3-glucan. Chitin was a chief part of ascospore walls, and melanin armored both ascospore and perithecium walls. Each life stage, it seems, builds a wall of its own mix, tuned to the risks that stage must face.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Protyusha Dey, Ian Black, Christian Heiss, Liyanage Devthilini Fernando, Parastoo Azadi, Piotr Shtyk, Stephen J. Free |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 35 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |