Lutein, a Natural Carotenoid, Induces α-1,3-Glucan Accumulation on the Cell Wall Surface of Fungal Plant Pathogens

alpha-1,3-Glucan, a component of the fungal cell wall, is a refractory polysaccharide for most plants. Previously, we showed that various fungal plant pathogens masked their cell wall surfaces with alpha-1,3-glucan to evade plant immunity. This surface accumulation of alpha-1,3-glucan was infection specific, suggesting that plant factors might induce its production in fungi. Through immunofluorescence observations of fungal cell walls, we found that carrot (Daucus carota) extract induced the accumulation of alpha-1,3-glucan on germlings in Colletotrichum fioriniae, a polyphagous fungal pathogen that causes anthracnose disease in various dicot plants. Bioassay-guided fractionation of carrot leaf extract successfully identified two active substances that caused alpha-1,3-glucan accumulation in this fungus: lutein, a carotenoid widely distributed in plants, and stigmasterol, a plant-specific membrane component. Lutein, which had a greater effect on C. fioriniae, also induced alpha-1,3-glucan accumulation in other Colletotrichum species and in the phylogenetically distant rice pathogen Cochliobolus miyabeanus, but not in the rice pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae belonging to the same phylogenetic subclass as Colletotrichum. Our results suggested that fungal plant pathogens reorganize their cell wall components in response to specific plant-derived compounds, which these pathogens may encounter during infection.