Nagel, Jan HendrikWingfield, Michael J.Slippers, Bernard2018-05-022018-05Nagel, J.H., Wingfield, M.J. & Slippers, B. 2018, 'Evolution of the mating types and mating strategies in prominent genera in the Botryosphaeriaceae', Fungal Genetics and Biology, vol. 114, pp. 24-33.1087-1845 (print)1096-0937 (online)10.1016/j.fgb.2018.03.003http://hdl.handle.net/2263/64761Little is known regarding mating strategies in the Botryosphaeriaceae. To understand sexual reproduction in this fungal family, the mating type genes of Botryosphaeria dothidea and Macrophomina phaseolina, as well as several species of Diplodia, Lasiodiplodia and Neofusicoccum were characterized from whole genome assemblies. Comparisons between the mating type loci of these fungi showed that the mating type genes are highly variable, but in most cases the organization of these genes is conserved. Of the species considered, nine were homothallic and seven were heterothallic. Mating type gene fragments were discovered flanking the mating type regions, which indicates both ongoing and ancestral recombination occurring within the mating type region. Ancestral reconstruction analysis further indicated that heterothallism is the ancestral state in the Botryosphaeriaceae and this is supported by the presence of mating type gene fragments in homothallic species. The results also show that at least five transitions from heterothallism to homothallism have taken place in the Botryosphaeriaceae. The study provides a foundation for comparison of mating type evolution between Botryosphaeriaceae and other fungi and also provides valuable markers for population biology studies in this family.en© 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Notice : this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Fungal Genetics and Biology. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. A definitive version was subsequently published in Fungal Genetics and Biology, vol. 114, pp. 24-33, 2018. doi : 10.1016/j.fgb.2018.03.003.DothideomycetesAncestral state reconstructionHomothallicHeterothallicIdiomorphPhylogenyNonhumanMolecular evolutionMating typeMating systemBotryosphaeriaceaeFungal mating type geneFungusGenetic recombinationHeterothallismHomothallismPostprint Article