IMA Fungus 10(1): e33845, doi: 10.1186/s43008-019-0020-8

Fungal clones win the battle, but recombination wins the war

Andre Drenth^‡, Alistair R. Mctaggart^§, Brenda D. Wingfield^|

‡ The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia§ Plant Pathology Herbarium, Biosecurity Queensland, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Brisbane, Australia| University of Pretoria, Department of Genetics and Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), Pretoria, South Africa

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Citation: Drenth A, Mctaggart AR, Wingfield BD (2019) Fungal clones win the battle, but recombination wins the war. IMA Fungus 10(1): e33845. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43008-019-0020-8

Abstract

Clonal reproduction is common in fungi and fungal-like organisms during epidemics and invasion events. The success of clonal fungi shaped systems for their classification and some pathogens are tacitly treated as asexual. We argue that genetic recombination driven by sexual reproduction must be a starting hypothesis when dealing with fungi for two reasons: (1) Clones eventually crash because they lack adaptability; and (2) fungi find a way to exchange genetic material through recombination, whether sexual, parasexual, or hybridisation. Successful clones may prevail over space and time, but they are the product of recombination and the next successful clone will inevitably appear. Fungal pathogen populations are dynamic rather than static, and they need genetic recombination to adapt to a changing environment.

Keywords

Epidemics, Evolution, Fungal adaptation, Fungal pathogens, Fungi, Invasive species, Oomycota, Sexual reproduction