Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jiawen Du, Yixuan Dong, He Zhao, Liping Peng, Yao Wang, Qilin Yu, Mingchun Li
Summary: In this study, the researchers identified the role of the Pho23 component in the Rpd3 HDAC complex in the transcriptional regulation of physiological processes in Candida albicans. Pho23 was found to regulate autophagic activity, cell wall stress resistance, hyphal development, protease secretion, and virulence in C. albicans.
Article
Cell Biology
Selene Mogavero, Frank M. Sauer, Sascha Brunke, Stefanie Allert, Daniela Schulz, Stephanie Wisgott, Nadja Jablonowski, Osama Elshafee, Thomas Krueger, Olaf Kniemeyer, Axel A. Brakhage, Julian R. Naglik, Edward Dolk, Bernhard Hube
Summary: Candidalysin is a peptide toxin secreted by C. albicans causing epithelial damage. Specific fungal attributes are required for candidalysin delivery to host cell membranes. The toxin accumulates in invasion pockets created by invasive hyphae, as visualised using camelid nanobodies.
CELLULAR MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tomas Di Mambro, Tania Vanzolini, Pierpaolo Bruscolini, Sergio Perez-Gaviro, Emanuele Marra, Giuseppe Roscilli, Marzia Bianchi, Alessandra Fraternale, Giuditta Fiorella Schiavano, Barbara Canonico, Mauro Magnani
Summary: Invasive fungal infections mainly affect specific patient groups and result in significant mortality. Challenges in current antifungal drugs include side effects and acquired resistance. The development of the humanized monoclonal antibody H5K1 shows promise in the treatment of invasive fungal infections.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Linghuo Jiang, Huihui Xu, Yiying Gu, Liudan Wei
Summary: Candida albicans, a significant human fungal pathogen, senses and adapts to the host environment through the pH-responsive Rim101 pathway. In this study, we demonstrate that the regulation of cell wall remodeling is integrated through differential degrees of Phr1 glycosylation by both the pH-regulated Rim101 pathway and the calcium/calcineurin signaling pathway in C. albicans.
CELL COMMUNICATION AND SIGNALING
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Biswambhar Biswas, Aishwarya Rana, Nidhi Gupta, Ishaan Gupta, Rekha Puria, Anil Thakur
Summary: This study presents an in vitro technique for growing C. auris biofilms on gelatin-coated coverslips, which mimics the biofilm formation of other Candida species. This method can be used to understand the molecular basis of biofilm formation, related pathogenic mechanisms, and drug tolerance.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Jessica Regan, Christian DeJarnette, Arturo Luna-Tapia, Josie E. Parker, Parker Reitler, Stacey Barnett, Katie M. Tucker, Steven L. Kelly, Glen E. Palmer
Summary: By modulating Erg3p activity, the antifungal efficacy and pathogenicity of Azole medications against C. albicans can be influenced, with host immunity playing a critical role in determining the clinical impact of this resistance mechanism.
Review
Microbiology
Sajad Ahmad Padder, Asiya Ramzan, Inayatullah Tahir, Reiaz ul Rehman, Abdul Haseeb Shah
Summary: Candida albicans, a commensal fungus, can become pathogenic in compromised host immunity, causing infections ranging from superficial mucosal to systemic. The fungus has evolved adaptive measures such as metabolic flexibility and stress response to enhance its virulence. Understanding its utilization of alternative carbon sources is crucial for developing potential therapeutic targets against its enhanced pathogenicity.
CRITICAL REVIEWS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Kammila Martins Nicolau Costa, Mariana Rillo Sato, Tellys Lins Almeida Barbosa, Meiry Glaucia Freire Rodrigues, Ana Claudia Dantas Medeiros, Bolivar Ponciano Goulart de Lima Damasceno, Joao Augusto Oshiro-Junior
Summary: The study developed a new treatment for VVC using micelles containing curcumin dispersed in a ureasil-polyether hybrid. The physical-chemical characterization of the micelles demonstrated potential application in different pharmaceutical forms with high release rate.
Article
Microbiology
Hafsa Qadri, Munazah Fazal Qureshi, Manzoor Ahmad Mir, Abdul Haseeb Shah
Summary: The incidence of human fungal infections is increasing due to the expansion of the immunocompromised patient population. Fungal pathogens deploy multiple resistance strategies to tackle the effect of antifungal agents, with glucose playing a central role in influencing pathogenicity and virulence traits.
MICROBIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Glaucia S. Arita, Daniella R. Faria, Isis R. G. Capoci, Erika S. Kioshima, Patricia S. Bonfim-Mendonca, Terezinha I. E. Svidzinski
Summary: This review focuses on the studies of C. albicans mutants for genes that encode cell wall-associated proteins, highlighting the importance of these proteins in virulence and hyphal morphogenesis. Some proteins with mutations are associated with attenuated virulence and defective filamentation, while others are still important for C. albicans virulence despite their inactivation not impairing filamentation.
MICROBIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Yoshihiro Ojima, Naoki Yokota, Yuki Tanibata, Shinsuke Nerome, Masayuki Azuma
Summary: This study investigated the mechanism of toxicity of Toyocamycin (TM) and its analogs to Candida albicans. It was found that the absence of purine nucleoside transport activity from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) made it less susceptible to TM and its analogs. However, when the concentrative nucleoside transporter (CNT) of Candida albicans (C. albicans) was expressed in S. cerevisiae, the sensitivity to TM and its analogs was restored. In addition, introducing human CNT3 into S. cerevisiae also made it sensitive to TM and its analogs. These findings enhance our understanding of the mechanisms of action of adenosine analogs toward Candida pathogens and human cells.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2022)
Article
Dentistry, Oral Surgery & Medicine
Norlela Yacob, Norasmatul Akma Ahmad, Syarida Hasnur Safii, Norsiah Yunus, Fathilah Abdul Razak
Summary: The purpose of this study was to compare the adherence of Streptococcus spp. and Candida spp. on 3D-printed denture bases prepared at different build orientations. The results showed that build orientation affects the adherence affinity of the denture base resin, and there was no significant difference between different groups of microbes. Printing dentures at a 0-degree build orientation can reduce microbial adhesion.
JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Sarah R. Beattie, Taiwo Esan, Robert Zarnowski, Emily Eix, Jeniel E. Nett, David R. Andes, Timothy Hagen, Damian J. Krysan
Summary: New antifungal therapies are needed for various fungal infections, including biofilms and drug-resistant strains. A novel keto-alkyl-pyridinium scaffold has been identified with broad spectrum activity against medically important fungi. This class of molecules shows potential for non-systemic applications.
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Giovanna Ginestra, Teresa Gervasi, Francesca Mancuso, Federica Bucolo, Laura De Luca, Rosaria Gitto, Davide Barreca, Giuseppina Mandalari
Summary: In this study, a series of arylsulfonamide compounds were screened and the structure-activity relationship was established based on a hit compound. The antifungal activity against various Candida species was tested, and cytotoxicity was evaluated. These findings could contribute to the development of novel topical therapeutics for fungal infections.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lan Lin, Moran Wang, Jingsi Zeng, Yehong Mao, Renjie Qin, Jun Deng, Xiaohu Ouyang, Xiaoshuang Hou, Chunyan Sun, Yadan Wang, Yaohua Cai, Mingyue Li, Chunxia Tian, Xi Zhou, Min Zhang, Heng Fan, Heng Mei, Alexey Sarapultsev, Huafang Wang, Gensheng Zhang, Peter F. Zipfel, Yu Hu, Desheng Hu, Shanshan Luo
Summary: This study investigates the systemic immune responses triggered by C. albicans and identifies novel evasion strategies used by clinical isolates. A disease-associated variation of Sap2 at nucleotide position 817 is identified, which enhances pathogenicity. In mice infected with the Sap2-273L strain, there is less complement activation, increased degradation of C3 and C3b, and a shift towards a M2-like macrophage phenotype and immunosuppressed cellular microenvironment characterized by more Tregs and exhausted T cells.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sofia Siscar-Lewin, Bernhard Hube, Sascha Brunke
Summary: This review explores the emergence and evolution of fungal pathogens in humans, discussing their success as pathogens and the factors that may have selected for virulence. The concepts of antivirulence and avirulence genes are introduced, providing new insights into the pathogenicity of fungi that infect humans.
TRENDS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Enrico Garbe, Pedro Miramon, Franziska Gerwien, Nico Ueberschaar, Louisa Hansske-Braun, Philipp Brandt, Bettina Boettcher, Michael Lorenz, Slavena Vylkova
Summary: The utilization of amino acids, particularly proline, is crucial for the metabolic flexibility, virulence, and stress adaptation of Candida albicans. This study identified Gnp2 as the main proline permease in C. albicans and revealed its essential role in filamentation, oxidative stress resistance, and survival following interaction with macrophages.
Article
Immunology
Melissa Wich, Stephanie Greim, Marta Ferreira-Gomes, Thomas Kruger, Olaf Kniemeyer, Axel A. Brakhage, Ilse D. Jacobsen, Bernhard Hube, Berit Jungnickel
Summary: Human serum antibodies have the ability to enhance the association of monocyte-like cells with C. albicans, inhibit adherence and damage to epithelial cells, and impair the invasion of oral epithelial cells by blocking induced endocytosis. Despite the cleavage of human IgG by C. albicans aspartic proteases, the protective function of human antibodies remains unaffected, providing a robust defense against the fungus.
Article
Immunology
Stefanie Allert, Daniela Schulz, Philipp Kaemmer, Peter Grossmann, Thomas Wolf, Sascha Schaeuble, Gianni Panagiotou, Sascha Brunke, Bernhard Hube
Summary: Candida auris is a newly emerged species causing invasive fungal infections with high rates of treatment failures. Our study revealed that C. auris is efficiently killed in human blood, but exhibits unique patterns of immune cell association, survival rates, and cytokine induction compared to other Candida species. The transcriptional adaptations of C. auris, its increased stress resistance and long-term environmental survival likely contribute to its high risk of contamination and distribution in healthcare settings.
Article
Microbiology
Bernardo Ramirez-Zavala, Ines Krueger, Christine Dunker, Ilse D. Jacobsen, Joachim Morschhaeuser
Summary: Protein kinases play important roles in the adaptation of Candida albicans to iron limitation. The protein kinase Ire1 is crucial for the growth of C. albicans under iron-limiting conditions, as it is required for the localization of the high-affinity iron permease Ftr1 to the cell membrane. Ire1 functions independently of endoplasmic reticulum stress and is essential for the virulence of C. albicans.
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Pierre Lapaquette, Amandine Ducreux, Louise Basmaciyan, Tracy Paradis, Fabienne Bon, Amandine Bataille, Pascale Winckler, Bernhard Hube, Christophe d'Enfert, Audrey Esclatine, Elisabeth Dubus, Marie-Agnes Bringer, Etienne Morel, Frederic Dalle
Summary: This study investigated the role of autophagy-related proteins in the infection of epithelial cells by Candida albicans. The results showed that autophagy-related proteins were recruited to invasion sites and autophagosomes were formed during active penetration of C. albicans into host cells. These autophagic events were associated with plasma membrane damage. Additionally, the autophagy-related proteins ATG5 and ATG16L1 played a crucial role in maintaining plasma membrane repair and protecting epithelial cells against C. albicans-induced cell death.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Torben Mentrup, Anna Yamina Stumpff-Niggemann, Nadja Leinung, Christine Schlosser, Katja Schubert, Rebekka Wehner, Antje Tunger, Valentin Schatz, Patrick Neubert, Ann-Christine Gradtke, Janina Wolf, Stefan Rose-John, Paul Saftig, Alexander Dalpke, Jonathan Jantsch, Marc Schmitz, Regina Fluhrer, Ilse D. Jacobsen, Bernd Schroeder
Summary: Dectin-1 plays a critical role in recognizing fungal pathogens through pattern recognition receptors on immune cells. Activation of Dectin-1a results in the formation of a stable receptor fragment lacking the ligand binding domain, which contributes to signal transduction in phagosomal membranes and is terminated by intramembrane proteases SPPL2a and 2b.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Maria Joanna Niemiec, Mario Kapitan, Maximilian Himmel, Kristina Doell, Thomas Krueger, Tobias G. Koellner, Isabel Auge, Franziska Kage, Christopher J. Alteri, Harry L. T. Mobley, Tor Monsen, Susanne Linde, Sandor Nietzsche, Olaf Kniemeyer, Axel A. Brakhage, Ilse D. Jacobsen
Summary: The human gut is a reservoir of microbes and a source of life-threatening infections, especially for immunocompromised patients. The interaction between Candida albicans and Proteus mirabilis in the gut can lead to increased host cell damage. The bacteria's hemolysin HpmA is found to be the key factor for host cell destruction, and Candida-mediated glucose consumption and farnesol production may trigger Proteus virulence.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Selene Mogavero, Sarah Hoefs, Alexa N. Lauer, Rita Mueller, Sascha Brunke, Stefanie Allert, Franziska Gerwien, Sabrina Groth, Edward Dolk, Duncan Wilson, Thomas Gutsmann, Bernhard Hube
Summary: Candidalysin, a peptide toxin produced by Candida albicans, is identified as the hemolytic factor of the organism. Its hemolytic activity is regulated by the P7 peptide. The purinergic receptor antagonist PPADS can neutralize the hemolytic effect of candidalysin and also affects its membrane intercalation ability. Antibodies targeting candidalysin show potential for neutralization and future anti-Candida therapy.
Review
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Jakob L. Sprague, Lydia Kasper, Bernhard Hube
Summary: This review focuses on the mechanisms of fungal translocation of Candida albicans from the intestine into the bloodstream that leads to systemic infections. It compares the differences between enteric bacterial pathogens and C. albicans, while discussing various hypotheses for how C. albicans enters and disseminates through the bloodstream following translocation.
Article
Cell Biology
Patrick Schaedel, Anna Czapka, Nadja Gebert, Ilse Denise Jacobsen, Alessandro Ori, Oliver Werz
Summary: Using mass spectrometry-based proteomics and metabololipidomics, we revealed molecular determinants of age-related changes in the functional phenotypes of murine peritoneal macrophages (PM). Old mice exhibited aberrant PM phenotypes, impacting their capabilities to release immunomodulatory chemokines and cytokines. Aging compromised the polarization process of macrophages, resulting in abnormal and afunctional macrophage subtypes that cannot be readily assigned to a typical M1 or M2 phenotype, challenging the dogma of increased pro-inflammatory macrophage pre-activation due to aging.
Article
Microbiology
Ilse D. Jacobsen
Summary: This review discusses the features and factors underlying the transition of Candida albicans from a commensal to a pathogenic state. Invasion and tissue damage are critical in the infection process, requiring transcriptional and morphological changes. Recent findings have identified site-specific differences in the transition process. The review also highlights the potential beneficial effects of gut colonization on the host.
CURRENT CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Pedro Miramon, Andrew W. Pountain, Michael C. Lorenz
Summary: The pathogenic yeast Candida auris is resistant to antifungal agents and can evade the innate immune system through interactions with macrophages. It shares similar transcriptional responses with other fungal pathogens when co-incubated with macrophages, including downregulation of transcription/translation and upregulation of alternative carbon metabolism pathways, transporters, oxidative stress response, and proteolysis. Gene family expansions in C. auris contribute to its virulence attributes.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Nicola T. Case, Johannes Westman, Michael T. Hallett, Jonathan Plumb, Aiman Farheen, Michelle E. Maxson, Jessie Macalpine, Sean D. Liston, Bernhard Hube, Nicole Robbins, Luke Whitesell, Sergio Grinstein, Leah E. Cowen
Summary: Metabolic flexibility and the ability to transition between yeast and filamentous growth states are important for Candida albicans' virulence. In this study, the role of mitochondrial ribosome, respiration, and the SNF1 AMP-activated kinase complex in governing filamentous growth within macrophages was uncovered. Downregulation of these genes reduced ATP levels and impeded filamentation and growth under certain conditions. The findings highlight the importance of metabolism in the interaction between C. albicans and macrophages.
Article
Microbiology
Enrico Garbe, Pedro Miramon, Franziska Gerwien, Nico Ueberschaar, Louisa Hansske-Braun, Philipp Brandt, Bettina Boettcher, Michael Lorenz, Slavena Vylkova
Summary: The study highlights the importance of metabolic flexibility in Candida albicans, particularly in relation to amino acid uptake for fungal growth and stress adaptation. The specialized proline transporter Gnp2 in C. albicans plays a crucial role in filamentation, oxidative stress resistance, and survival following interaction with macrophages. This work suggests new connections between amino acid uptake and stress adaptation in C. albicans.