Fungi utilize ancient antimicrobial proteins to attack hosts and their microbiomes, plant researchers discover

An international research team led by Cologne-based plant scientist Professor Dr. Bart Thomma from the Institute for Plant Sciences, the Collaborative Research Center MiBiNet and the CEPLAS Cluster of Excellence for Plant Sciences has discovered the surprising evolutionary origin of fungal effector proteins: molecules that pathogens use today to infect their hosts appear to have evolved from ancient antimicrobial proteins.

---

**From [Biology News - Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology](https://phys.org/rss-feed/biology-news/) via [This RSS Feed](https://phys.org/rss-feed/biology-news/).**