The Deletion of Revealed Its Important Roles in Osmotic Stress Tolerance, Amino Acid and Sugar Metabolism, and the Reproduction Process of

is an important domesticated fungus that has been applied to produce many traditional fermented foods under high osmotic conditions. However, the detailed mechanisms of tolerance to osmotic stress remain largely unknown. Here, we construct a target-deleted strain (Δ) of . and found that the Δ mutants grew slowly and suppressed the development of the cleistothecium compared to the wide-type strains (WT) under salt-stressed and non-stressed conditions. Furthermore, differentially expressed genes ( < 0.001) governed by were involved in salt tolerance, ABC transporter, amino acid metabolism, sugar metabolism, and the reproduction process. The Δ strains compared to WT strains under short- and long-term salinity stress especially altered accumulation levels of metabolites, such as amino acids and derivatives, carbohydrates, organic acids, and fatty acids. This study provides new insights into the underlying mechanisms of salinity tolerance and lays a foundation for flavor improvement of foods fermented with . .