Kershaw M J, Talbot N J
Washington Singer Laboratories, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Exeter, United Kingdom.
Fungal Genet Biol. 1998 Feb;23(1):18-33. doi: 10.1006/fgbi.1997.1022.
Fungal hydrophobins are secreted proteins which react to interfaces between fungal cell walls and the air or between fungal cell walls and solid surfaces. They have been shown to be important in many morphogenetic processes, including sporulation, fruit body development, and infection structure formation. Hydrophobins form hydrophobic surface layers by self-assembly of secreted protein monomers in response to the environment. This process results in amphipathic polymers of interwoven rodlets on surfaces of fungal aerial structures and hyphal aggregations. Hydrophobin self-assembly is also involved in attachment of hyphae to hydrophobic surfaces and this may act as a conformational cue for certain developmental processes. Although hydrophobins appear to be ubiquitous among fungal taxa, a second class of fungal protein with very different biochemical characteristics could fulfill a similar role. These proteins, called repellents, have been identified in only one fungal species so far, but clearly help to make aerial hyphae hydrophobic. The functional similarities between hydrophobins and repellents highlight the importance of aerial development to the fungal lifestyle.
真菌疏水蛋白是分泌蛋白，它们会对真菌细胞壁与空气之间或真菌细胞壁与固体表面之间的界面做出反应。已证明它们在许多形态发生过程中很重要，包括孢子形成、子实体发育和侵染结构形成。疏水蛋白通过分泌的蛋白质单体根据环境进行自组装，形成疏水表面层。这个过程会在真菌气生结构和菌丝聚集体的表面产生交织小杆的两亲聚合物。疏水蛋白自组装还参与菌丝附着到疏水表面，这可能作为某些发育过程的构象线索。尽管疏水蛋白似乎在真菌类群中普遍存在，但具有非常不同生化特性的第二类真菌蛋白可能发挥类似作用。这些被称为驱避剂的蛋白质目前仅在一种真菌物种中被鉴定出来，但显然有助于使气生菌丝疏水。疏水蛋白和驱避剂之间的功能相似性突出了气生发育对真菌生活方式的重要性。
