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Microorganisms
Volume 13
Issue 12
10.3390/microorganisms13122852
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

The Aromatic Amino Acid Biosynthesis Gene VdARO2 and the Cross-Pathway Regulator VdCPC1 Coordinately Regulate Virulence in Verticillium dahliae

by
Chongbo Zhang
1,†,
Can Xu
2,†,
Yuan Wang
1,
Jiafeng Huang
1,* and
Xiaoqiang Zhao
1,*
1
Key Laboratory of Oasis Agricultural Pest Management and Plant Protection Resources Utilization, College of Agriculture, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832000, China
2
Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832000, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Microorganisms 2025, 13(12), 2852; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122852
Submission received: 4 November 2025 / Revised: 11 December 2025 / Accepted: 11 December 2025 / Published: 15 December 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Molecular Microbiology and Immunology)
Versions Notes

Abstract

The soil-borne fungus Verticillium dahliae is a devastating pathogen responsible for substantial losses in cotton production. This study elucidated the key functions of VdARO2 and VdCPC1 in fungal pathogenicity. VdARO2 encodes a Chalmoic acid synthase involved in the biosynthesis of aromatic amino acids, while VdCPC1 is a central regulator of amino acid starvation response and reveals a key regulatory relationship between VdARO2 and VdCPC1 to jointly control fungal virulence. We demonstrate that both genes are essential for growth, conidiation, and microsclerotia formation in V. dahliae. The VdΔaro2 mutant exhibited severe developmental defects and a complete loss of microsclerotia production, accompanied by widespread transcriptional dysregulation. Disruption of VdARO2 significantly upregulated VdCPC1, triggering a compensatory starvation response that nonetheless failed to restore pathogenicity. Silencing VdCPC1 similarly impaired fungal development and attenuated virulence. Our findings reveal a crucial regulatory axis in which VdARO2 and VdCPC1 coordinate metabolic homeostasis and stress adaptation to facilitate host colonization, thereby identifying promising targets for the control of Verticillium wilt.
Keywords: aromatic amino acid biosynthesis; chorismate synthase; cross-pathway control; pathogenicity aromatic amino acid biosynthesis; chorismate synthase; cross-pathway control; pathogenicity

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MDPI and ACS Style

Zhang, C.; Xu, C.; Wang, Y.; Huang, J.; Zhao, X. The Aromatic Amino Acid Biosynthesis Gene VdARO2 and the Cross-Pathway Regulator VdCPC1 Coordinately Regulate Virulence in Verticillium dahliae. Microorganisms 2025, 13, 2852. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122852

AMA Style

Zhang C, Xu C, Wang Y, Huang J, Zhao X. The Aromatic Amino Acid Biosynthesis Gene VdARO2 and the Cross-Pathway Regulator VdCPC1 Coordinately Regulate Virulence in Verticillium dahliae. Microorganisms. 2025; 13(12):2852. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122852

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zhang, Chongbo, Can Xu, Yuan Wang, Jiafeng Huang, and Xiaoqiang Zhao. 2025. "The Aromatic Amino Acid Biosynthesis Gene VdARO2 and the Cross-Pathway Regulator VdCPC1 Coordinately Regulate Virulence in Verticillium dahliae" Microorganisms 13, no. 12: 2852. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122852

APA Style

Zhang, C., Xu, C., Wang, Y., Huang, J., & Zhao, X. (2025). The Aromatic Amino Acid Biosynthesis Gene VdARO2 and the Cross-Pathway Regulator VdCPC1 Coordinately Regulate Virulence in Verticillium dahliae. Microorganisms, 13(12), 2852. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122852

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