The 135 kbp mitochondrial genome of Agaricus bisporus is the largest known eukaryotic reservoir of group I introns and plasmid-related sequences

At 135,005 nt, the mitochondrial genome in Agaricus bisporus represents the largest fungal mitochondrial genome sequenced to date. Its large size is mainly due to the presence of mobile genetic elements, including a total of 43 group I introns, three group II introns, and five DNA fragments that show sequence similarity to linear invertron-like plasmids. The introns are distributed in eight of the 15 protein coding genes. These introns contain a total of 61,092 nt (∼45.3% of the whole mitochondrial genome) and include representatives of most of the group I introns so far found in mitochondrial genomes of Basidiomycota. The plasmid-like sequences include 6730 nt total representing 5.0% of the genome. These sequences showed high-level similarities to two different mitochondrial plasmids reported for basidiomycete mushrooms: the autonomously replicating pEM in Agaricus bitorquis and the integrated linear plasmid sequences in Agrocybe aegerita and Moniliophthora perniciosa. Moreover, the plasmid-related sequences are located within or adjacent to two large (4559 nt) inverted repeats containing also two sets of mitochondrial tRNA genes. Our analyses are consistent with the hypothesis that horizontal DNA transfer has played a significant role in the evolution of the A. bisporus mitochondrial genome.

► The A. bisporus mitochondrial genome is the largest reported group I intron reservoir.
► It possesses introns not found in other sequenced eukaryotes, including fungi.
► It possesses insertion sites for two distinct linear plasmids.
► Integration leads to inverted repeats carrying plasmid remnants and functional tRNAs.