Repression of asexual sporulation in the dark and under cycling conditions is compromised in <i>Chlae1</i> and <i>Chvel1</i> mutants growing vegetatively.

<p><b>A.</b> Quantification of asexual spores from cultures grown under constant light, 12 hour light/dark cycle, and dark conditions. Error bars are standard deviation. Asterisks represent p-value <0.05 in T-test analysis in which each mutant strain was compared with the corresponding WT C4 strain under the same conditions. Asexual sporulation is repressed in WT in the dark or under the light cycling conditions, while this was not observed for the <i>Chlae1</i> mutant. Absence of <i>ChVEL1</i> augments asexual sporulation regardless of the light condition. <b>B.</b> Cultures grown on CMX plates under constant light, 12 hour light/dark cycle and constant dark conditions. Note that in the dark, WT C4 is white and fluffy reflecting aerial hyphal growth and production of very few conidia, while <i>Chlae1</i> and <i>Chvel1</i> mutants are pigmented. Alternating light and dark conidial banding pattern of the WT strain C4 in middle panel indicates that conidiation of the WT strain is responsive to light. This banding pattern is absent or much reduced in the <i>Chvel1</i> mutant, but still evident in the <i>Chlae1</i> mutant. <b>C.</b> Side view of plates of WT strain C4, and the <i>Chlae1</i> and <i>Chvel1</i> mutants grown in constant light or dark on CMX. Note aerial hyphae on plates of WT, especially from the dark. In contrast, the surface of the <i>Chlae1</i> mutant is very flat while the <i>Chvel1</i> mutant shows a small amount of aerial hyphae. Thus Lae1 appears to play a greater role in promoting aerial hyphae growth than Vel1.