Virulence and Pathogenicity of Fungal Pathogens with Special Reference to Candida albicans

The frequency of severe systemic fungal diseases has increased in the last few decades. The clinical use of broad spectrum antibacterial drugs and immunosuppressive agents after organ transplantation, cancer chemotherapy, and advancements in surgery are associated with increasing risk of fungal infection. Despite the effectiveness of available antifungals in combating such infections, the emergence of drug resistance to antifungals, and problems of toxicity and poor delivery of drugs at the target site in systemic infections, have necessitated a systematic approach to the study of fungal pathogens, host–fungi interactions, and identification of virulence factors. Characterization of virulence factors is expected to improve understanding of fungal pathogenesis and to help explore new drug targets. In this article we discuss the process of fungal infections, virulence factors and pathogenicity of fungal pathogens, with special reference to Candida albicans. Adherence, dimorphism, phenotypic switching, secretion of hydrolytic enzymes, biofilm formation, M.S.A. Khan (*) and I. Ahmad Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India e-mail: [email protected] F. Aqil Brown Cancer Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, USA M. Owais Interdisciplinary Biotechnology Unit, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India M. Shahid Department of Microbiology, JN Medical College, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India J. Musarrat DNA Research Chair, Department of Zoology, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia I. Ahmad et al. (eds.), Combating Fungal Infections, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-12173-9_2, # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 21 and ability to adapt at host body temperature are some of the well-known virulence factors among pathogenic fungi and are discussed in relation to C. albicans.