RNA-seq analysis of kinase deletion mutant (?mpkA) and parental strain Aspergillus nidulans reveal novel cellular functions of MpkA.

A transcriptomic assessment of a kinase deletion mutant (?mpkA) and a control strain revealed many cellular activities this kinase is impacting. Studies were conducted in the model filamentous fungi, Aspergillus nidulans¸ under rich growth conditions. MpkA is a known kinase involved in the cell wall integrity signaling pathway. This pathway is activated upon cell wall stress and regulates production of cell wall related genes. Here, fungi were grown under non-stressful conditions. The comparison between the control strain and the deletion mutant transcript levels revealed previously unknown functions, such as iron starvation, that MpkA may be involved with. Overall design: A control strain and deletion mutant grown in non-stressful conditions (2 biological replicates and 2 technical replicates) were analyzed to determine alternative, unknown functions of MpkA using RNA-seq.