Immunometabolic reprogramming in macrophages infected with active and dormant : differential modulation of respiration, glycolysis, and fatty acid utilization.

Dormancy is an adaptation in which cells reduce their metabolism, transcription, and translation to stay alive under stressful conditions, preserving the capacity to reactivate once the environment reverts to favorable conditions. Dormancy and reactivation of () are closely linked to intracellular residency within macrophages. Our previous work showed that murine macrophages rely on the viable but not cultivable (VBNC-a dormancy phenotype) fungus from active , with striking differences in immunometabolic gene expression.

Direct and Abscopal Antitumor Responses Elicited by AlPcNE-Mediated Photodynamic Therapy in a Murine Melanoma Model.

Melanoma, the most aggressive form of skin cancer, presents a major clinical challenge due to its tendency to metastasize and recalcitrance to traditional therapies. Despite advances in surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, the outlook for advanced melanoma remains bleak, reinforcing the urgent need for more effective treatments. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has emerged as a promising alternative, leading to targeted tumor destruction with minimal harm to surrounding tissues.

Kicking sleepers out of bed: Macrophages promote reactivation of dormant Cryptococcus neoformans by extracellular vesicle release and non-lytic exocytosis.

Macrophages play a key role in disseminated cryptococcosis, a deadly fungal disease caused by Cryptococcus neoformans. This opportunistic infection can arise following the reactivation of a poorly characterized latent infection attributed to dormant C. neoformans.

Dectin-2 is critical for phagocyte function and resistance to Paracoccidioides brasiliensis in mice.

Germline-encoded pattern recognition receptors, particularly C-type lectin receptors (CLRs), are essential for phagocytes to sense invading fungal cells. Among CLRs, Dectin-2 (encoded by Clec4n) plays a critical role in the antifungal immune response as it recognizes high-mannose polysaccharides on the fungal cell wall, triggering phagocyte functional activities and ultimately determining adaptive responses. Here, we assessed the role of Dectin-2 on the course of primary Paracoccidioides brasiliensis systemic infection in mice with Dectin-2-targeted deletion.