Detection of lpsA gene in Neotyphodium endophytic fungi of grasses in Iran

The lpsA gene, a late acting gene in the biosynthetic pathway of ergovaline, a suspected causative agent for fescue toxicosis in cattle, has been cloned from Neotyphodium lolii, an endophytic fungus of Lolium perenne. In this study, a similar gene was detected in several strains of endophytic Neotyphodium spp. isolated from grass hosts endogenous to Iran using direct and nested-PCR assays. Except for Bromus tomentellus, most isolates from other hosts contained this gene. The 747-bp PCR products of the local strains had identical restriction patterns for all tested restriction enzymes. Accordingly, sequence analysis of the nested PCR product amplified from the internal segment of 747-bp band, showed 99% similarity with the corresponding region of the lpsA gene of N. lolii. It therefore appears that prevalence of the lpsA gene with its conserved nature among Neotyphodium isolates is mainly host dependent.