MoCul4 assists MoKmt1 to catalyze H3K9 methylation and regulates the growth, development, and pathogenicity in Magnaporthe oryzae.

MoCul4 enhances MoKmt1-mediated H3K9 methylation and is essential for growth, development, and pathogenicity in Magnaporthe oryzae, with Δ Mocul4 mutants showing more severe defects.

• Why it matters: Understanding epigenetic regulation in Magnaporthe oryzae is crucial for developing new strategies to control rice blast disease, a major threat to rice production.
• What they did: Researchers generated gene knockout mutants of Δ Mokmt1 and Δ Mocul4 using homologous recombination and analyzed their phenotypes, H3K9me3 levels, and gene expression profiles through Western blot and RNA-seq.
• The result: Both mutants exhibited significant growth and developmental impairments, with Δ Mocul4 showing more severe defects, and H3K9me3 levels were nearly abolished in both, indicating MoCul4's role in modulating MoKmt1 activity and heterochromatin integrity.