Functional and Comparative Analysis of Centromeres Reveals Clade-Specific Genome Rearrangements in Candida auris and a Chromosome Number Change in Related Species.

ABSTRACT: The thermotolerant multidrug-resistant ascomycete Candida auris rapidly emerged since 2009 causing systemic infections worldwide and simultaneously evolved in different geographical zones. The molecular events that orchestrated this sudden emergence of the killer fungus remain mostly elusive. Here, we identify centromeres in C. auris and related species, using a combined approach of chromatin immunoprecipitation and comparative genomic analyses. We find that C. auris and multiple other species in the Clavispora/Candida clade shared a conserved small regional GC-poor centromere landscape lacking pericentromeres or repeats. Further, a centromere inactivation event led to karyotypic alterations in this species complex. Interspecies genome analysis identified severa

SUBMITTER: Narayanan A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8262905 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature