Proteomic Analysis of Mycelial Exudates of Ustilaginoidea virens

Rice false smut (RFS) disease, which is caused by Ustilaginoidea virens, has been widespread all over the world in recent years, causing irreversible losses. Under artificial culture conditions, exudates will appear on colonies of U. virens during the growth of the hyphae. Exudation of droplets is a common feature in many fungi, but the functions of exudates are undetermined. As the executors of life functions, proteins can intuitively reflect the functions of exudates. Shotgun proteomics were used in this study. A total of 650 proteins were identified in the exudate of U. virens, and the raw data were made available via ProteomeXchange with the identifier PXD019861. There were 57 subcategories and 167 pathways annotated with Gene Ontology (GO) classification and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis, respectively. Through protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis, it was found that 20 proteins participated in the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Two separate PPI analyses were performed for carbon metabolism and microbial metabolism in diverse environments. After comparing and annotating the functions of proteins of the exudate, it was speculated that the exudate was involved in the construction and remodeling of the fungal cell wall. Pathogenicity, sporulation, and antioxidant effects might all be affected by the exudate.