Amplification of Fungal Genomes Using Multiple Displacement Amplification

The availability of genomic DNA of sufficient quality and quantity is fundamental to molecular genetic analysis. Many filamentous fungi are slow growing or even unculturable and current DNA isolation methods are often unsatisfactory. Multiple displacement amplification (MDA) is a technique that can be employed to reliably amplify whole genomes from such recalcitrant species. Template DNA obtained using traditional DNA extraction methods, glass bead-mediated disruption of fungal spores or alkaline lysis of mycelium can be used to produce DNA of sufficient quality to be used as a substrate in MDA. With the advent of next generation sequencing methods, the ability to utilize relatively small samples of DNA to achieve complete genome sequencing is now a possibility.