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  3. H2S-mediated protein S-sulfhydration modulates infectivity and autophagy in the rice blast fungus

H2S-mediated protein S-sulfhydration modulates infectivity and autophagy in the rice blast fungus

  • Nat Commun. 2025 Jul 5;16(1):6222. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-61582-8.
Hong Hu 1,  Mengyuan Qin 1,  Jiening Zhang 1,  Jintao Jiang 1,  Zhiqin Su 1,  Lun Guan 1,  Zhiguang Qu 1,  Caiyun Liu 1,  Xuan Cai 1,  Zhiyong Ren 1,  Yuhang Duan 1,  Deyao Zhang 1,  Hao Liu 1,  Lu Zheng 1,  Junbin Huang 1,  Xiao-Lin Chen 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology and Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology of Hubei Province, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
  • 2 National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology and Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology of Hubei Province, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China. chenxiaolin@mail.hzau.edu.cn.
PMID: 40617858 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61582-8
Abstract

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) regulates cellular activities in Plants and mammals through S-sulfhydration, a post-translational modification of proteins. The role of H2S and its molecular targets in fungi, however, remains unclear. Here we show that H2S, synthesized by cystathionine γ-lyase (CSE1) in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae, is essential for optimal fungal Infection. Excessive H2S, through S-sulfhydration, impairs Fungal infectivity by inhibiting Autophagy. Using quantitative proteomics, we identify numerous S-sulfhydrated proteins in M. oryzae, including the autophagy-related protein ATG18. S-sulfhydration of a cysteine residue (Cys78) in ATG18 is essential for its binding to phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate, thereby maintaining the protein's structural stability and regulating Autophagy. Thus, our study reveals a mechanism by which H2S-mediated S-sulfhydration controls Autophagy in the rice blast fungus and suggests the potential use of H2S donors as a strategy to control Fungal diseases by targeting Fungal development and Infection structures.

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