Article
Immunology
Nichole D. Brandquist, Cierra Lampman, Elias J. Smith, Lizeth Basilio, Akram Almansob, Peter C. Iwen, Jill R. Blankenship
Summary: In this study, clinical strains of Candida albicans collected from patients with systemic infections were classified by MLST analysis. These clinical strains exhibited different filamentation patterns across various inducing conditions, indicating a broad phenotypic diversity among clinical strains. The results emphasize the importance of using diverse clinical strains in pathogenesis assays.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Shihao Song, Shuo Zhao, Xiuyun Sun, Lili Meng, Zijie Wang, Huihui Tan, Jingyun Liu, Min Zhang, Yinyue Deng
Summary: The compounds 5-sulfenylindole and 5-selenylindole discovered in this study showed excellent abilities to inhibit biofilm formation and hyphal formation in Candida albicans, as well as attenuating its virulence in human cell lines and mouse infection models. They also decreased the expression of genes involved in cAMP-PKA and MAPK pathways and showed synergistic effects with antifungal agents against drug-resistant strains. Additionally, 5-sulfenylindole restored the composition and richness of the intestinal microbiota in mice infected by C. albicans.
Article
Microbiology
Christopher McCrory, Jiyoti Verma, Timothy M. Tucey, Rachael Turner, Harshini Weerasinghe, Traude H. Beilharz, Ana Traven
Summary: This study reveals that crotonate, a short-chain fatty acid, can change the cell morphology and immune interactions of Candida albicans. Crotonate reduces invasive hyphal morphogenesis of C. albicans within macrophages and suppresses the transcription of hyphae-induced genes through increasing histone crotonylation. It suggests that diverse acylations of histones enable C. albicans to respond to environmental signals and regulate its cell morphology and host-pathogen interactions.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Melissa R. Cruz, Shane Cristy, Shantanu Guha, Giuseppe Buda De Cesare, Elena Evdokimova, Hiram Sanchez, Dominika Borek, Pedro Miramon, Junko Yano, Paul L. Fidel, Alexei Savchenko, David R. Andes, Peter J. Stogios, Michael C. Lorenz, Danielle A. Garsin
Summary: The authors present the crystal structure of the bacteriocin EntV secreted by Enterococcus faecalis and characterize its antifungal properties in various in vitro and in vivo assays.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Enrico Garbe, Franziska Gerwien, Dominik Driesch, Tina Mueller, Bettina Boettcher, Markus Graeler, Slavena Vylkova
Summary: The transition of Candida albicans from yeast to hyphae is crucial for its virulence. In this study, we investigated the metabolic adaptations that accompany the filamentation process and identified the activation of de novo sphingolipid biosynthesis as an essential pathway for hypha formation.
Article
Biology
Rohan S. Wakade, Laura C. Ristow, Melanie Wellington, Damian J. Krysan
Summary: Candida albicans, a common human fungal pathogen, undergoes a morphogenetic transition from yeast to filamentous forms during infection. In this study, the authors used intravital imaging assays to screen transcription factor mutants in a mouse model and identified regulators of filament initiation and elongation. They found distinct sets of transcription factors that affect these processes in vivo, including some that have no effect in vitro. Furthermore, they discovered a new mode of function for the widely studied transcription factor Efg1 in mediating relief of Nrg1 repression. This study provides the first characterization of the transcriptional network governing C. albicans filamentation in vivo.
Article
Microbiology
Yinhe Mao, Norma V. V. Solis, Scott G. G. Filler, Aaron P. P. Mitchell
Summary: This study found that Nrg1 plays a positive role in gene expression under hypha-inducing conditions in multiple clinical isolates, and this role is magnified in the P57055 strain. These findings indicate that strain diversity is a valuable resource for C. albicans molecular genetic analysis.
Article
Microbiology
Yen-Mu Wu, Po-Yen Huang, Yi-Chuan Cheng, Chih-Hua Lee, Meng-Chieh Hsu, Jang-Jih Lu, Shao-Hung Wang
Summary: Coinfection with Candida and Staphylococcus results in higher mortality in both patients and in vivo surrogate models. The study demonstrates that during co-biofilm formation, C. albicans and S. aureus exhibit enhanced virulence contributing to the high mortality rate observed in mixed BSIs.
Article
Microbiology
Qiuxiang Zhang, Jiaxun Li, Wenwei Lu, Jianxin Zhao, Hao Zhang, Wei Chen
Summary: The study demonstrated that L. plantarum CCFM8724 has the potential to prevent dental caries by regulating metabolism and gene expression during biofilm formation, leading to a reduction in the mass of mixed-species biofilm. This provides a rationale for evaluating L. plantarum CCFM8724 as a potential oral probiotic for inhibiting cariogenic pathogen biofilm formation and improving dental caries.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Louis A. Chevalier, Mario Pinar, Remi Le Borgne, Catherine Durieu, Miguel Penalva, Arezki Boudaoud, Nicolas Minc
Summary: Hyphal tip growth in filamentous fungi is driven by the expansion of a protective cell wall (CW) secreted from apical vesicles. We found that tip growth is associated with balanced rates of CW secretion and expansion, and affecting this balance leads to immediate changes in CW thickness, mechanics, and shape. These findings provide unprecedented insights into the dynamics of CW secretion and expansion, and their role in stabilizing fungal tip growth and promoting morphogenetic plasticity.
Article
Immunology
Lasse van Wijlick, Sadri Znaidi, Arturo Hernandez-Cervantes, Virginia Basso, Sophie Bachellier-Bassi, Christophe d'Enfert
Summary: The alternate growth of Candida albicans between yeast and hyphal forms is crucial for its pathogenicity. The transcription factor Orf19.217 plays an important role in regulating hyphal morphogenesis and iron acquisition. Orf19.217-mediated filamentation is distinct from a true hyphal program.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Allan Wee Ren Ng, Lanxin Li, Evan Wei Long Ng, Chenyu Li, Yuan Qiao
Summary: The major fungal pathogen C. albicans has the ability to switch between a benign yeast state and an invasive hyphal form. Bacterial peptidoglycan fragments (PGNs) are the most potent inducers of C. albicans hyphal growth. This study investigated the molecular details of PGN-Cyr1 interactions and demonstrated the critical role of Cyr1 in PGN binding and hyphal growth. Disruption of PGN recognition by Cyr1 resulted in defective hyphal growth and reduced virulence of C. albicans.
ACS INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Yasmin Ahmed, Melanie A. C. Ikeh, Donna M. MacCallum, Alison M. Day, Kevin Waldron, Janet Quinn
Summary: Polyphosphate mobilization plays a vital role in the pathobiology of Candida albicans, impacting processes such as activation of the Pho4 transcription factor, cell cycle progression, stress resistance, morphogenetic switching, and virulence. Blocking polyphosphate mobilization leads to significant morphological defects and attenuated virulence.
Article
Microbiology
Miranda Yu, Dakota Ma, Susan Eszterhas, Christiane Rollenhagen, Samuel A. Lee
Summary: This study examined the role of the early endocytosis gene PAL1 in the fungal pathogen Candida albicans. The results showed that PAL1 is involved in susceptibility to antifungal agents, cell wall integrity, and membrane stability related to early endocytosis.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Gang Luo, Tianxu Wang, Jingkai Zhang, Pengju Zhang, Yang Lu
Summary: Candida albicans relies on a variety of genes for hyphal initiation and maintenance during its pathogenesis. The induction of iron uptake genes during sustained hyphal development, even with additional free iron available, suggests an iron-independent mechanism. Blocking iron acquisition in C. albicans prevents BRG1 activation, leading to impaired hyphal maintenance, while ectopically expressed BRG1 can sustain hyphal development in the absence of iron.
BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Review
Microbiology
Lois M. Douglas, James B. Konopka
JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGY
(2016)
Article
Cell Biology
Hong X. Wang, Lois M. Douglas, Petra Vesela, Reinhard Rachel, Jan Malinsky, James B. Konopka
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF THE CELL
(2016)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Salvatore M. Parrino, Haoyu Si, Shamoon Naseem, Kevin Groudan, Justin Gardin, James B. Konopka
MOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Shamoon Naseem, Kyunghun Min, Daniel Spitzer, Justin Gardin, James B. Konopka
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Shamoon Naseem, Kyunghun Min, Daniel Spitzer, Justin Gardin, James B. Konopka
Article
Immunology
Shamoon Naseem, David Frank, James B. Konopka, Nick Carpino
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2015)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Lois M. Douglas, James B. Konopka
Article
Microbiology
Kyunghun Min, Amy Biermann, Deborah A. Hogan, James B. Konopka
Review
Microbiology
Carla E. Lanze, Rafael M. Gandra, Jenna E. Foderaro, Kara A. Swenson, Lois M. Douglas, James B. Konopka
MICROBIOLOGY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY REVIEWS
(2020)
Article
Immunology
Jenna E. Foderaro, James B. Konopka
Summary: The survival of the fungal pathogen Candida albicans in a mammalian host relies on its ability to resist oxidative stress through flavodoxin-like proteins. Among these proteins, Pst3 plays a major role in promoting resistance to oxidative stress induced by small quinone molecules. Analysis of protein levels and induction with p-benzoquinone showed Pst1 and Pst3 to be the most abundant and protective against oxidative damage, demonstrating the distinct roles of flavodoxin-like proteins in resisting oxidative stress.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Leo D. Bemena, Kyunghun Min, James B. Konopka, Aaron M. Neiman
Summary: Chitosan plays a crucial role in stress resistance and virulence in fungal species. The formation of a chitosan layer in the cell walls of different yeast species requires a conserved set of genes, suggesting potential new targets for antifungal therapies aimed at disrupting cell wall function.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carla E. Lanze, Sai Zhou, James B. Konopka
Summary: The study demonstrated that the N-terminal region of Sur7 is responsible for its localization to MCC/eisosomes, while the C-terminal domain is crucial for resisting cell wall stress. Additionally, Sur7 plays an important role in the cytoplasm.
MOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Microbiology
Kyunghun Min, Shamoon Naseem, James B. Konopka
Article
Plant Sciences
Marina Nadal, Ruairidh Sawers, Shamoon Naseem, Barbara Bassin, Corinna Kulicke, Abigail Sharman, Gynheung An, Kyungsook An, Kevin R. Ahern, Amanda Romag, Thomas P. Brutnell, Caroline Gutjahr, Niko Geldner, Christophe Roux, Enrico Martinoia, James B. Konopka, Uta Paszkowski