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Combining fossil-based and molecular calibrations with data on horizontal gene transfer events, the authors develop a time-calibrated phylogeny of Fungi. This timescale, which integrates analytic uncertainties, suggests an older age of crown Fungi (1,401–896 million years ago), as well as a minimum age for ancient interactions involving fungi and the algal ancestors of embryophytes in terrestrial ecosystems (1,253–797 Ma).

Aspergillus fumigatus, a widespread fungal pathogen commonly found in soil, harbours a diverse endohyphal bacterial community. Microscopic analyses, including transmission electron microscopy, confir...

Long-time Current Biology advisory board member, Joseph Heitman, introduces this special issue on ‘The Fungi’.

The legume-rhizobia symbiosis possesses great potential for sustainable agriculture because of its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen, reducing crop dependence on nitrogen fertilizers. Rhizobia recognize the host legume through flavonoids released by the roots. These signals are detected by bacteria typically over a few millimeters. Recent research has shown that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi extend this recognition beyond 15 cm by transporting flavonoids along their hyphae. In soil, common mycorrhizal networks linking plants are formed by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. We hypothesized that such networks linking different legumes can transmit host-specific signals, guiding rhizobia to their appropriate hosts. Using in vitro and greenhouse microcosms, we linked Medicago truncatula and Glycine max via a common mycorrhizal network of Rhizophagus irregularis and inoculated GFP-labeled Sinorhizobium meliloti and mCherry-labeled Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens on the hyphae. S. meliloti preferentially migrated towards M. truncatula, whereas B. diazoefficiens preferentially migrated towards G. max (155 ± 8 and 13 ± 3 nodules, respectively). This was confirmed in the greenhouse with a higher concentration of S. meliloti (2.1-2.5 × 105 CFU·g−1) near M. truncatula and a higher concentration of B. diazoefficiens (1.5-1.6 × 105 CFU·g−1) near G. max (71-82 and 15-18 nodules, respectively). Metabolomics revealed host-specific flavonoids in hyphal exudates: M. truncatula-connected hyphae released DL-liquiritigenin, naringenin, sakuranetin, and 3,7-dimethylquercetin, whereas G. max-connected hyphae released daidzin, 6”-O-malonyldaidzin, irilone, and erylatissin A. These findings establish that common mycorrhizal networks constitute a “navigation system”, using chemical signals to orient rhizobia towards their specific hosts, thereby improving nodulation with potential applications in agriculture.

Nuclei define eukaryotes, enabling macromolecular compartmentalization and cellular regulation. Each nucleus is believed to contain one or more haploid sets of chromosomes (1N). However, we discovered...

It is commonly accepted that the hyphae of filamentous fungi expand by tip growth that is restricted to the first apical cell. Here, Schuster et al. show that, contrary to expectations, subapical cell...

No “one size fits all” option exists for treating fungal infections in large part due to genetic and phenotypic variability among strains. Accounting for strain heterogeneity is thus fundamental for d...

Endophytic fungi colonize healthy plant tissues without disease. Ujimatsu et al. reveal that the fungal transcription factor CtBOT6 triggers the virulence of a root-associated beneficial endophyte by ...