Editing Endosymbiont (section)

=== Fungi ===
Fungi host endohyphal bacteria;<ref name="Shaffer-2022">{{cite journal |vauthors=Shaffer JP, Carter ME, Spraker JE, Clark M, Smith BA, Hockett KL, Baltrus DA, Arnold AE |display-authors=6 |title=Transcriptional Profiles of a Foliar Fungal Endophyte (''Pestalotiopsis'', Ascomycota) and Its Bacterial Symbiont (''Luteibacter'', ''Gammaproteobacteria'') Reveal Sulfur Exchange and Growth Regulation during Early Phases of Symbiotic Interaction |journal=mSystems |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=e0009122 |date=April 2022 |pmid=35293790 |pmc=9040847 |doi=10.1128/msystems.00091-22 |editor-first=Stephen R. |editor-last=Lindemann }}</ref> the effects of the bacteria are not well studied. Many such fungi in turn live within plants.<ref name="Shaffer-2022" /> These fungi are otherwise known as fungal [[endophyte]]s. It is hypothesized that the fungi offers a safe haven for the [[bacteria]], and the diverse bacteria that they attract create a micro-ecosystem.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Arnold AE |title=Bacterial-fungal interactions: Bacteria take up residence in the house that Fungi built |journal=Current Biology |volume=32 |issue=7 |pages=R327–R328 |date=April 2022 |pmid=35413262 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2022.02.024 |s2cid=248089525 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2022CBio...32.R327A }}</ref>

These interactions may impact the way that fungi interact with the environment by modulating their [[phenotypes]].<ref name="Shaffer-2022" /> The bacteria do this by altering the fungi's [[gene expression]].<ref name="Shaffer-2022" /> For example, ''[[Luteibacter]]'' sp. has been shown to naturally infect the [[Ascomycota|ascomycetous]] [[endophyte]] ''[[Pestalotiopsis]]'' sp. isolated from ''[[Platycladus|Platycladus orientalis]].<ref name="Shaffer-2022" />'' The ''Luteibacter'' sp. influences the [[auxin]] and enzyme production within its host, which, in turn, may influence the effect the fungus has on its plant host''.<ref name="Shaffer-2022" />'' Another interesting example of a bacterium living in symbiosis with a fungus is the fungus ''[[Mortierella]].'' This soil-dwelling fungus lives in close association with a toxin-producing bacteria, ''Mycoavidus'', which helps the fungus defend against [[nematode]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Büttner H, Niehs SP, Vandelannoote K, Cseresnyés Z, Dose B, Richter I, Gerst R, Figge MT, Stinear TP, Pidot SJ, Hertweck C |display-authors=6 |title=Bacterial endosymbionts protect beneficial soil fungus from nematode attack |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |volume=118 |issue=37 |pages=e2110669118 |date=September 2021 |pmid=34504005 |pmc=8449335 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2110669118 |bibcode=2021PNAS..11810669B |doi-access=free }}</ref>

In 2024, researchers injected individual cells of the bacterium ''Mycetohabitans rhizoxinica'' into cells of the fungus ''[[Rhizopus microsporus]]'' and were able to propagate the pair of cells for ten rounds using [[cell sorting#Fluorescence-activated|fluorescence-activated cell sorting]] to select fungal cells containing the bacterium. They found that the fungus's DNA changed during the rounds of propagation.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08010-x|title=Inducing novel endosymbioses by implanting bacteria in fungi|first1=Gabriel H.|last1=Giger|first2=Chantal|last2=Ernst|first3=Ingrid|last3=Richter|first4=Thomas|last4=Gassler|first5=Christopher M.|last5=Field|first6=Anna|last6=Sintsova|first7=Patrick|last7=Kiefer|first8=Christoph G.|last8=Gäbelein|first9=Orane|last9=Guillaume–Gentil|first10=Kirstin|last10=Scherlach|first11=Miriam|last11=Bortfeld-Miller|first12=Tomaso|last12=Zambelli|first13=Shinichi|last13=Sunagawa|first14=Markus|last14=Künzler|first15=Christian|last15=Hertweck|first16=Julia A.|last16=Vorholt|date=28 November 2024|journal=Nature|volume=635|issue=8038|pages=415–422|via=www.nature.com|doi=10.1038/s41586-024-08010-x|pmc=11560845}}</ref> This was claimed to be the first time that endosymbiosis was artifically induced in a laboratory.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.quantamagazine.org/scientists-re-create-the-microbial-dance-that-sparked-complex-life-20250102/|title=Scientists Re-Create the Microbial Dance That Sparked Complex Life|first=Molly|last=Herring|date=2 January 2025|website=Quanta Magazine}}</ref>