Mating type determination within a microsatellite multiplex for the fungal pathogen Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the causative agent of white-nose disease in bats

Emerging infectious diseases are a severe conservation threat for a variety of plants and animals. In North America, several bat species are threatened by white-nose disease, which has caused an unprecedented mass mortality of > 6 million bats since 2006. The fungus Pseudogymnoascus (Geomyces) destructans is the causative agent of the disease. Though asexual reproduction is the norm, sexual reproduction is possible as two mating types exist. Sexual reproduction has been implicated in the emergence of virulent strains of fungi but to date no rapid means of mating type characterisation was available for P. destructans. In this study, three mating type-specific primer sets were designed and tested on 80 isolates. The primers were multiplexed with microsatellite loci allowing for rapid and concurrent genotyping and mating type assignment. These markers will have great utility in better understanding and predicting the population dynamics and evolutionary potential of this fungus, including the emergence of virulent strains.