Light and nutrient signal transduction in Trichoderma reesei

Abstract

Changing light conditions, caused by the rotation of earth resulting in day and night or growth on the surface or within a substrate, result in considerably altered physiological processes in fungi. For the biotechnological workhorse Trichoderma reesei (syn. Hypocrea jecorina), regulation of glycoside hydrolase gene expression, especially cellulase expression was shown to be a target of light dependent gene regulation. Important signal transduction pathways, which contribute to this regulation include the light response pathway, the heterotrimeric G-protein pathway and the cAMP pathway. In the course of this PhD thesis the effects of light on different carbon sources shall be studied. Thereby, the consequences of nutrient signaling in dependence of light can be revealed and exploited for biotechnological fermentations of bioactive agents. In addition to studies on the transcriptome level, enzyme secretion in light and darkness shall be analyzed and correlated with transcriptome data. With this study novel insights into the interplay between transmission of nutrient signals and light signals shall be gained and put into the context of possibilities for strain improvement of T. reesei.