A simple synthesis of group 2 anthracenides and their use as reducing agents for polypnictogen ligand complexes.

By using an improved synthetic pathway, the anthracenides of the group 2 metals Ca, Sr, and Ba are straightforwardly accessible for subsequent organometallic syntheses. These highly reactive compounds are slightly soluble in tetrahydrofuran and can be used as synthons for group 2 metal transfer due to the lability of the anthracene substituent. These features were used to explore their reactivity towards the polyphosphorus ligand complexes [Cp*Fe(η-P)] (Cp* = C(CH)) and [Cp*Fe(η-(1-CH-2-PPh-P))], respectively.

Starship giant transposons dominate plastic genomic regions in a fungal plant pathogen and drive virulence evolution.

Starships form a recently discovered superfamily of giant transposons in Pezizomycotina fungi, implicated in mediating horizontal transfer of diverse cargo genes between fungal genomes. Their elusive nature has long obscured their significance, and their impact on genome evolution remains poorly understood. Here, we reveal a surprising abundance and diversity of Starships in the phytopathogenic fungus Verticillium dahliae.

Phosphonium fullerides: isolable zwitterionic adducts of a phosphine with C.

Although fullerene derivatization has been extensively studied for decades, zwitterionic adducts with neutral Lewis bases are rare, and those with tertiary phosphines remain elusive. This work presents a combined experimental and computational study on the first isolable zwitterionic phosphonium fullerides. The reaction of tris(tetramethylguanidinyl)phosphine ((tmg)P) with C results in the formation of the zwitterionic adducts (tmg)PC and (tmg)PCP(tmg) in quantitative yield.

Exploiting Type 3 Secretion to Study Effector Contribution to Disease in Spinach.

Intensive spinach cultivation creates favourable conditions for the emergence and rapid evolution of pathogens, leading to substantial economic losses. Research on host-pathogen interactions in leafy greens would benefit from advanced biotechnological tools, however absence of such tools in spinach hampers our understanding of spinach immunity. Here, we explored the potential of Type III Secretion System (T3SS)-mediated effector delivery to study pathogen effector activity in spinach.

Diverging Reactivity in Anilidophosphine Supported Group III Complexes.

We report the synthesis of scandium and yttrium halide complexes with bidentate, monoanionic anilidophosphine (PN) ligands and the general formula (PN)MX (M = Sc (1-X), Y (2-X); X = Cl (1-Cl/2-Cl), X = I (1-I/2-I). Attempts to functionalize these complexes by salt metathesis reaction revealed that the chlorido complexes are quite unreactive precursors, whereas the iodo complexes readily engage in a broad variety of reactions. We report the azide complexes (1-N and 2-N) as well as the heavy cyanate complexes with the general formula (PN)M(OCPn) (M = Sc; Pn = P (1-OCP), Pn = As (1-OCAs) and M = Y; Pn = P (2-OCP), Pn = As (2-OCAs)).

Reference-free identification and pangenome analysis of accessory chromosomes in a major fungal plant pathogen.

Accessory chromosomes, found in some but not all individuals of a species, play an important role in pathogenicity and host specificity in fungal plant pathogens. However, their variability complicates reference-based analysis, especially when these chromosomes are missing in the reference genome. Pangenome variation graphs offer a reference-free alternative for studying these chromosomes.

Allenylidene Phosphonium Ion: An Isoelectronic Phosphorus Analogue of [3]Cumulene.

Herein, we disclose the synthesis, characterization, and bonding analysis of a crystalline allenylidene phosphonium ion ([RP═C═C═CAr]) [2] (R = 1,3-diisopropylphenylimidazolin-2-ylidenamino, CAr = 9-fluorenylidene), an isolobal analogue of [3]cumulenes. The cation was prepared via methoxide ion abstraction of an alkynyl phosphine 1. Electron rich N-heterocyclic imine substituents and a π conjugated fluorenyl scaffold together stabilize the resulting three-coordinate phosphonium center of [2].

Preserving the Biologically Coherent Generic Concept of , "Plant Destroyer".

is a long-established, well-known, and globally important genus of plant pathogens. Phylogenetic evidence has shown that the biologically distinct, obligate biotrophic downy mildews evolved from at least twice. Because, cladistically, this renders "paraphyletic," it has been proposed that evolutionary clades be split into multiple genera (Crous et al.

Probing the influence of imidazolylidene- and triazolylidene-based carbenes on the catalytic potential of dioxomolybdenum and dioxotungsten complexes in deoxygenation catalysis.

We report the synthesis of dianionic OCO-supported NHC and MIC complexes of molybdenum and tungsten with the general formula (OCO)MO (OCO = bis-phenolate benzimidazolylidene M = Mo (1-Mo), bis-phenolate triazolylidene M = Mo (2-Mo), M = W (2-W) and bis-phenolate imidazolylidene, M = Mo (3-Mo), W (3-W)). These complexes are tested in the catalytic deoxygenation of nitroarenes using pinacol as a sacrificial oxygen atom acceptor/reducing agent to examine the influence of the carbene and the metal centre in this transformation. The results show that the molybdenum-based triazolylidene complex 2-Mo is by far the most active catalyst, and TOFs of up to 270 h are observed, while the tungsten analogues are basically inactive.

Novel genomic features in entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana ILB308: accessory genomic regions and putative virulence genes involved in the infection process of soybean pest Piezodorus guildinii.

Background: Biological control methods involving entomopathogenic fungi like Beauveria bassiana have been shown to be a valuable approach in integrated pest management as an environmentally friendly alternative to control pests and pathogens. Identifying genetic determinants of pathogenicity in B. bassiana is instrumental for enhancing its virulence against insects like the resistant soybean pest Piezodorus guildinii.

Frequent genetic exchanges revealed by a pan-mitogenome graph of a fungal plant pathogen.

Mitochondria are present in almost all eukaryotic lineages. The mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) evolve separately from nuclear genomes, and they can therefore provide relevant insights into the evolution of their host species. is a major fungal plant pathogen that is assumed to reproduce clonally.

Pangenome graph analysis reveals extensive effector copy-number variation in spinach downy mildew.

Plant pathogens adapt at speeds that challenge contemporary disease management strategies like the deployment of disease resistance genes. The strong evolutionary pressure to adapt, shapes pathogens' genomes, and comparative genomics has been instrumental in characterizing this process. With the aim to capture genomic variation at high resolution and study the processes contributing to adaptation, we here leverage an innovative, multi-genome method to construct and annotate the first pangenome graph of an oomycete plant pathogen.

Modular Synthesis of Monoanionic PN Ligands Leads to Unexpected Structural Diversity in Lanthanum Chemistry.

We report a new synthetic entry to a series of -substituted anilidophosphine ligands (short HPN, R = pTol (), 3,5-dimethylphenyl (), 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl (), 2-methoxyphenyl (), diisopropylphenyl (), and adamantyl ()), allowing a detailed tuning of their steric (and electronic) properties. could be converted into their lithium salts , which are effective precursors for salt metathesis reactions. The new ligands are used for the synthesis of an array of lanthanide complexes using LaCl(THF) as a precursor.

Phyllosticta paracitricarpa is synonymous with the EU quarantine fungus P. citricarpa based on phylogenomic analyses.

Phyllosticta citricarpa is an important citrus-pathogen and a quarantine organism in the European Union. Its recently described relative, P. paracitricarpa, is very closely related and not listed as a quarantine organism.

Electron-rich pyridines with -N-heterocyclic imine substituents: ligand properties and coordination to CO, SO, BCl and Pd complexes.

Electron-rich pyridines with π donor groups at the position play an important role as nucleophiles in organocatalysis, but their ligand properties and utilization in coordination chemistry have received little attention. Herein, we report the synthesis of two electron-rich pyridines 1 and 2 bearing N-heterocyclic imine groups at the position and explore their coordination chemistry. Experimental and computational methods were used to assess the donor ability of the new pyridines showing that they are stronger donors than aminopyridines and guanidinyl pyridines, and that the nature of the N-heterocyclic backbone has a strong influence on the pyridine donor strength.

Genetic diversity of the banana Fusarium wilt pathogen in Cuba and across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Fusarium wilt of bananas (FWB) is a severe plant disease that leads to substantial losses in banana production worldwide. It remains a major concern for Cuban banana cultivation. The disease is caused by members of the soil-borne Fusarium oxysporum species complex.

Receptor-like cytoplasmic kinases of different subfamilies differentially regulate SOBIR1/BAK1-mediated immune responses in Nicotiana benthamiana.

Cell-surface receptors form the front line of plant immunity. The leucine-rich repeat (LRR)-receptor-like kinases SOBIR1 and BAK1 are required for the functionality of the tomato LRR-receptor-like protein Cf-4, which detects the secreted effector Avr4 of the pathogenic fungus Fulvia fulva. Here, we show that the kinase domains of SOBIR1 and BAK1 directly phosphorylate each other and that residues Thr522 and Tyr469 of the kinase domain of Nicotiana benthamiana SOBIR1 are required for its kinase activity and for interacting with signalling partners, respectively.

Møller-Plesset Adiabatic Connection at Large Coupling Strengths for Open-Shell Systems.

We study the adiabatic connection that has as weak-coupling expansion the Møller-Plesset perturbation series, generalizing to the open-shell case previous closed-shell results for the large-coupling limit. We first focus on the hydrogen atom with fractional spins, providing results along the adiabatic connection from small to large coupling strengths. We reveal an intriguing phase diagram and an equation for the large-coupling leading order that has closed-form solutions for specific choices of its relevant quantum numbers.

Oomycete Metabolism Is Highly Dynamic and Reflects Lifestyle Adaptations.

The selective pressure of pathogen-host symbiosis drives adaptations. How these interactions shape the metabolism of pathogens is largely unknown. Here, we use comparative genomics to systematically analyze the metabolic networks of oomycetes, a diverse group of eukaryotes that includes saprotrophs as well as animal and plant pathogens, with the latter causing devastating diseases with significant economic and/or ecological impacts.

Supramolecular compounds assembled from the heteroleptic tetrahedral complex [{CpMo(CO)}(μ,η-AsSb)] and metal salts.

The reaction of the tetrahedral complex [{CpMo(CO)}(μ,η-AsSb)] with Cu and Ag salts is presented which gives unprecedented neutral and cationic supramolecular aggregates featuring mixed As/Sb-donor molecules as ligands/linkers between metal ions.

Segmental duplications drive the evolution of accessory regions in a major crop pathogen.

Many pathogens evolved compartmentalized genomes with conserved core and variable accessory regions (ARs) that carry effector genes mediating virulence. The fungal plant pathogen Fusarium oxysporum has such ARs, often spanning entire chromosomes. The presence of specific ARs influences the host range, and horizontal transfer of ARs can modify the pathogenicity of the receiving strain.

Implications of the three-dimensional chromatin organization for genome evolution in a fungal plant pathogen.

The spatial organization of eukaryotic genomes is linked to their biological functions, although it is not clear how this impacts the overall evolution of a genome. Here, we uncover the three-dimensional (3D) genome organization of the phytopathogen Verticillium dahliae, known to possess distinct genomic regions, designated adaptive genomic regions (AGRs), enriched in transposable elements and genes that mediate host infection. Short-range DNA interactions form clear topologically associating domains (TADs) with gene-rich boundaries that show reduced levels of gene expression and reduced genomic variation.

The soil-borne white root rot pathogen Rosellinia necatrix expresses antimicrobial proteins during host colonization.

Rosellinia necatrix is a prevalent soil-borne plant-pathogenic fungus that is the causal agent of white root rot disease in a broad range of host plants. The limited availability of genomic resources for R. necatrix has complicated a thorough understanding of its infection biology.