Lucas Matheus Soares Pereira

PubMed2026

Multi-omics analysis reveals Protein Kinase A-associated regulatory remodeling during adaptation of Trichoderma reesei to lignocellulosic substrate.

The filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei is a major industrial source of holocellulolytic enzymes, and its response to complex carbon sources is regulated by nutrient-sensing mechanisms, including the cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-protein kinase A (PKA) signaling pathway. Here, we integrated transcriptomics, quantitative proteomics, and phosphoproteomics to analyze PKAc1-associated responses in the parental strain QM9414 and a Δpkac1 strain cultivated under glucose or sugarcane bagasse conditions. Deletion of pkac1 was associated with altered growth-related phenotypes and reduced extracellular activities of selected biomass-depolymerizing enzymes. Multi-omics profiling revealed condition-dependent changes affecting subsets of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) genes and proteins, nutrient transporters, stress-associated proteins, and regulatory factors. Phosphoproteomics identified phosphorylation-state changes associated with pkac1 deletion, including reduced phosphorylation at sites enriched for the PKA consensus motif. In silico peptide docking was used to prioritize candidate PKAc1-associated substrates for future validation, including a Sec 7-derived peptide with favorable docking behavior relative to the control peptide. Together, these data support a working model in which PKAc1 contributes to regulatory and phosphorylation-state remodeling during adaptation to sugarcane bagasse, with effects on the magnitude and/or timing of selected CAZyme-related outputs in T. reesei.

Trichoderma↗

PubMed2026

Trichoderma reesei Nsd3 transcription factor: pleiotropic roles in development, stress response, secondary metabolism, and cellulase production.

Trichoderma reesei is known for its ability to secrete high amounts of cellulases, enzymes of fundamental importance in generating products from lignocellulosic biomass. Diverse signaling pathways and transcription factors (TFs) control the cellulolytic repertoire in T. reesei to ensure correct adaptation to the environment. Here, we analyzed RNA-Seq data and identified a new potential regulator of cellulase production in T. reesei: a novel TF named Nsd3, a homolog of NsdC from Aspergilli. Deletion of nsd3 reduced vegetative growth and conidiation on solid medium. Phenotypic characterization of the Δnsd3 strain showed that it is more sensitive to osmotic stress, but more resistant to cell wall and oxidative stresses. Our results showed that Nsd3 is a repressor of cellulase expression by directly regulating key genes in the cellulolytic pathway, an unreported role for this TF in fungi. Loss of nsd3 leads to a faster and more robust induction of cellulolytic genes, and higher cellulase and hemicellulase activities. Transcriptional profiling by RNA-Seq, chromatin accessibility profiling by ATAC-Seq, and protein-DNA interaction assays showed that sugar transporters are important targets of Nsd3 during cellulase expression regulation. Combined with microscopy and gene expression analyses, the ATAC-Seq data also highlighted Nsd3 as a central regulator of cell wall remodeling and organization. Furthermore, the transcriptomics also showed that Nsd3 regulates genes involved in secondary metabolism. These results showed that Nsd3 regulates several physiological processes and provide novel insights into the regulatory system of cellulases in T. reesei that can be used in the design of high-performance strains for biorefinery.IMPORTANCETrichoderma reesei is a key player in the production of hydrolytic enzymes for the degradation of lignocellulose biomass, and transcription factors are important targets for genetic engineering to construct cellulase-hyperproducing strains. Here, we identified the transcription factor Nsd3 and characterized its role as a regulator of cellulase production in T. reesei. We applied two powerful genomics methods (transcriptome sequencing and chromatin accessibility sequencing) to unravel the global role of Nsd3 and its regulatory mechanism. Nsd3 participates in various biological processes in T. reesei, including cell wall remodeling, calcium metabolism, and secondary metabolism, in addition to regulating the expression of sugar transporters. Protein-DNA interaction assays demonstrate that Nsd3 acts through important genes to regulate cellulase expression, including ace4, crt1, stp1, and cel1b. Our study provides mechanistic insights about how Nsd3 regulates diverse physiological processes in T. reesei. This work also applied ATAC-Seq for the first time to study chromatin accessibility in T. reesei.

ATAC-Seq↗