Plant-derived decapeptide OSIP108 interferes with Candida albicans biofilm formation without affecting cell viability.

We previously identified a decapeptide from the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, OSIP108, which is induced upon fungal pathogen infection. In this study, we demonstrated that OSIP108 interferes with biofilm formation of the fungal pathogen Candida albicans without affecting the viability or growth of C. albicans cells.

Calmodulin binding to Dfi1p promotes invasiveness of Candida albicans.

Candida albicans, a dimorphic fungus, undergoes hyphal development in response to many different environmental cues, including growth in contact with a semi-solid matrix. C. albicans forms hyphae that invade agar when cells are embedded in or grown on the surface of agar, and the integral membrane protein Dfi1p is required for this activity.

The plant defensin RsAFP2 induces cell wall stress, septin mislocalization and accumulation of ceramides in Candida albicans.

The antifungal plant defensin RsAFP2 isolated from radish interacts with fungal glucosylceramides and induces apoptosis in Candida albicans. To further unravel the mechanism of RsAFP2 antifungal action and tolerance mechanisms, we screened a library of 2868 heterozygous C. albicans deletion mutants and identified 30 RsAFP2-hypersensitive mutants.

A Candida albicans cell wall-linked protein promotes invasive filamentation into semi-solid medium.

Growth of cells in contact with an abiotic or biological surface profoundly affects cellular physiology. In the opportunistic human pathogen, Candida albicans, growth on a semi-solid matrix such as agar results in invasive filamentation, a process in which cells change their morphology to highly elongated filamentous hyphae that grow into the matrix. We hypothesized that a plasma membrane receptor-type protein would sense the presence of matrix and activate a signal transduction cascade, thus promoting invasive filamentation.

Genome-wide identification of H-NS-controlled, temperature-regulated genes in Escherichia coli K-12.

DNA microarrays demonstrate that H-NS controls 69% of the temperature regulated genes in Escherichia coli K-12. H-NS is shown to be a common regulator of multiple iron and other nutrient acquisition systems preferentially expressed at 37 degrees C and of general stress response, biofilm formation, and cold shock genes highly expressed at 23 degrees C.