Gene expression and role in cadmium tolerance of two PLAC8 containing proteins identified in the ericoid mycorrhizal fungus Oidiodendron maius

Fungi living in heavy metal polluted soils have evolved different cellular and molecular systems to adapt and survive in these harsh environments. Oidiodendron maius Zn is an ericoid mycorrhizal fungus previously shown to be highly tolerant to zinc thanks to antioxidative enzymes and membrane transporters. A novel gene, OmFCR1, was recently identified from this fungus because it conferred strong cadmium tolerance when expressed in yeast. OmFCR1 codes for a protein belonging to the PLAC8 family and physically interacts in yeast with the mismatch repair system, involved in DNA damage repair. The O.maius Zn genome also contains another gene – named OmFCR2 – that codes for a protein sharing with OmFCR1 the PLAC8 domain and other sequence similarities. In this work, we analyzed gene expression of OmFCR1 and OmFCR2 in the fungus O. maius Zn when exposed to cadmium, the ability of OmFCR2 to confer cadmium tolerance when expressed in yeast, and the growth of OmFCR1-null mutants of O. maius Zn upon cadmium exposure. Although OmFCR2 was also able to confer some cadmium tolerance to yeast, the different expression pattern of these two genes would suggests different roles in O. maius Zn.