The ability of Candida albicans to adhere to subendothelial extracellular matrix (ECM) may be important in the pathogenesis of disseminated candidiasis. ECM proteins, such as fibronectin, laminin, and types I and IV collagen bind C. albicans avidly. These proteins all possess heparin-binding domains. The influence of the glycosaminoglycans (GAGS) including heparin, heparan sulfate and dextran s...

Mice lethally infected with Candida albicans were exposed to small-particle aerosols containing amphotericin B-liposomes. The drug, when administered twice daily for 2 h (0.58 mg/kg of body weight per day) on days 1, 2, and 3 postinoculation, significantly reduced the numbers of Candida organisms in the kidneys. Aerosol treatment increased the survival time of mice given 2 2-h treatments once a...

By generating a calcineurin mutant of the Candida albicans wild-type strain SC5314 with the help of a new recyclable dominant selection marker, we confirmed that calcineurin mediates tolerance to a variety of stress conditions but is not required for the ability of C. albicans to switch to filamentous growth in response to hypha-inducing environmental signals. While calcineurin was essential fo...

Candida albicans is the leading cause of systemic candidiasis, a fungal disease associated with high mortality and poor treatment options. The kidney is the target organ during infection and whose control is largely dependent on innate immunity, because lymphocytes appear redundant for protection. In this article, we show that this apparent redundancy stems from a failure of Ag-specific CD4(+) ...

Malaria is one of the most common causes of febrile illness in travelers. Coinfections with bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogens may not be suspected unless a patient fails to respond to malaria treatment. Using novel immunohistochemical and molecular techniques, Plasmodium falciparum, Clostridium perfringens, and Candida spp. coinfections were confirmed in a German traveler to Haiti. Plasmod...

We developed a liposome-intercalated preparation of amphotericin B by using small, unilamellar vesicles 0.06 to 0.1 micron in diameter. In contrast to previously described liposomal preparations of amphotericin B, these vesicles have the advantage that they are small enough to be filter sterilized. We compared the efficacy of liposomal amphotericin B with that of the commercial drug given as an...

T cells are required for normal host defense against fungal infection, and individuals with T cell-deficiency syndromes are highly susceptible to fungal pathogens. Interleukin (IL)-17A is a proinflammatory cytokine that interconnects myeloid and lymphoid host defense. The role of murine (m) IL-17A/mIL-17A receptor (R) interactions was evaluated in a murine model of systemic candidiasis. In resp...

The Hgt4 protein of Candida albicans (orf19.5962) is orthologous to the Snf3 and Rgt2 glucose sensors of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that govern sugar acquisition by regulating the expression of genes encoding hexose transporters. We found that HGT4 is required for glucose induction of the expression of HGT12, HXT10, and HGT7, which encode apparent hexose transporters in C. albicans. An hgt4Delta ...

Disseminated candidiasis is associated with 30-40% mortality in severely immunocompromised patients. Among the causal agents, Candida albicans is the dominant one. Various animal models have been developed for investigating gene functions in C. albicans. Zebrafish injection models have increasingly been applied in elucidating C. albicans pathogenesis because of the conserved immunity, prolific ...