Lectins are characterized of the carbohydrate-binding ability and play comprehensive roles in fungal physiology (e.g., defense response, development and host–pathogen interaction). Beauveria bassiana, a filamentous entomopathogenic fungus, has a lectin-like protein containing a Fruit Body_domain (BbLec1). BbLec1 could bind to chitobiose and chitin in fungal cell wall. BbLec1 proteins interacted with each other to form multimers, and translocated into eisosomes. Further, the interdependence between BbLec1 and the eisosome protein PliA was essential for stabilizing the eisosome architecture. To test the BbLec1 roles in B. bassiana, we constructed the gene disruption and complementation mutants. Notably, the BbLec1 loss resulted in the impaired cell wall in mycelia and conidia as well as conidial formation capacity. In addition, disruption of BbLec1 led to the reduced cytomembrane integrity and the enhanced sensitivity to osmotic stress. Finally, ΔBbLec1 mutant strain displayed the weakened virulence when compared with the wild-type strain. Taken together, BbLec1 traffics into eisosome and links the functionality of eisosome to development and virulence of B. bassiana.

凝集素以碳水化合物结合能力为特征，并在真菌生理学（例如，防御反应、发育和宿主-病原体相互作用）中发挥综合作用。球孢白僵菌是一种丝状昆虫病原真菌，具有包含子实体结构域 (BbLec1) 的凝集素样蛋白。BbLec1 可以与真菌细胞壁中的壳二糖和几丁质结合。BbLec1 蛋白相互作用形成多聚体，并易位到 eisosomes。此外，BbLec1 和 eisosome 蛋白 PliA 之间的相互依赖性对于稳定 eisosome 结构至关重要。在B. bassiana 中测试BbLec1角色，我们构建了基因破坏和互补突变体。值得注意的是，BbLec1 缺失导致菌丝体和分生孢子的细胞壁以及分生孢子形成能力受损。此外，BbLec1 的破坏导致细胞膜完整性降低和对渗透压力的敏感性增强。最后，与野生型菌株相比，Δ BbLec1突变菌株显示出减弱的毒力。总之，BbLec1 进入 eisosome 并将 eisosome 的功能与B. bassiana 的发育和毒力联系起来。