Signal Transduction In Fungi

Abstract

Eukaryotic cell function is dependent on a variety of signalling mechanisms which translate external physicochemical and biochemical stimuli into specific intracellular responses involving second messengers, e.g. Ca 2+ , cyclic AMP (cAMP), inositol lipids (Figure 9.1). Signal transduction is believed to underpin virtually all important cellular processes, including growth, differentiation and metabolism. In comparison to mammalian, and to a lesser extent plant systems, information on signal transduction in fungi is limited, particularly for filamentous species. However, with the accelerating use of both budding and fission yeast as eukaryotic cell models, considerable progress is being made at the molecular and biochemical level and it is now possible to review general aspects of signal transduction in fungi in the light of other more extensively studied eukaryotic models.