Sjoerd Johan Seekles

Original Article This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi:10.1111/febs.16891. Abstract The filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger is well known for its high protein secretion capacity and a preferred host for homologous and heterologous protein production.

Fungal spores are stress-resistant cell types that can survive extreme conditions, such as high temperatures and high exposure to UV radiation [1]. The high stress resistance of fungal spores allows them to survive our preventive treatments and subsequently cause food spoilage and fungal infections [2]. Moreover, fungal spores are dormant, metabolically (nearly) inactive, and can stay viable in this state even after 17 years of storage [3].