Abstract:
The mutualistic association between Euops chinensis and Penicillium herquei represents a classic example of insect fungiculture. We demonstrate that the fungal cultivar, P. herquei, produces the antibiotic scleroderolide to protect the fungal garden, while the host weevil vertically transmits the symbiont across generations. Mature hyphae of P. herquei secrete abundant extracellular components, including a β-1,3-glucanase (GL) and a previously uncharacterized protein, Pc. We show that Pc modulates gut microbiota composition, promoting host insect growth and, notably, alleviating obesity, colitis, and diabetes in mouse models. Furthermore, we reveal that GL possesses a unique dual-overlapped domain architecture with two distinct enzymatic activities: a glycanase involved in glycan metabolism and a pectin lyase associated with plant cell wall degradation. Together, these findings uncover a novel nutritional and microbiome-regulatory paradigm in insect fungiculture and highlight its potential for translational applications in microbiota-targeted therapies.

Biography:
Xingzhong Liu is a Professor in the College of Life Sciences at Nankai University (since 2020) and a Principal Investigator at the State Key Laboratory of Mycology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (since 2001). He serves as Editor-in-Chief of Mycology. His research focuses on fungal evolutionary biology and microbiome homeostasis. Professor Liu has published more than 300 papers in peer-reviewed international journals, including PNAS, Nature Communications, The ISME Journal, Microbiome, and Molecular Biology and Evolution. He is the recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Tai Fung-Lan Award for Distinguished Mycologist (2015) from the Mycological Society of China, the Distinguished Asia Mycologist Award (2023) from the Asia Mycological Association, and the “Fellow Medal” (2024) from the International Mycological Association.