The proteomic response of to amphotericin B (AmB) reveals the involvement of the RTA-like protein RtaA in AmB resistance.

The polyene antimycotic amphotericin B (AmB) and its liposomal formulation AmBisome belong to the treatment options of invasive aspergillosis caused by . Increasing resistance to AmB in clinical isolates of species is a growing concern, but mechanisms of AmB resistance remain unclear. In this study, we conducted a proteomic analysis of exposed to sublethal concentrations of AmB and AmBisome.

Uptake of the Siderophore Triacetylfusarinine C, but Not Fusarinine C, Is Crucial for Virulence of Aspergillus fumigatus.

Siderophores play an important role in fungal virulence, serving as trackers for imaging and as biomarkers of fungal infections. However, siderophore uptake is only partially characterized. As the major cause of aspergillosis, Aspergillus fumigatus is one of the most common airborne fungal pathogens of humans.

Triazole Priming as an Adaptive Response and Gateway to Resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus.

Invasive aspergillosis (IA), caused predominantly by Aspergillus fumigatus, is the most common opportunistic mold infection in immunocompromised patients. Resistance of A. fumigatus to triazoles has been increasingly reported, leading to poor outcomes of IA to the front-line azoles.

Transcriptional response of to copper and the role of the Cu chaperones.

is the leading cause of life-threatening invasive mold infections in immunocompromised individuals. This ubiquitous saprophyte possesses several natural attributes allowing it to evade the immune system, including the ability to withstand high toxic Cu concentrations within the phagosomes of macrophages and neutrophils. We previously established that at high levels, Cu binds and activates the transcription factor AceA, which upregulates the expression of the Cu exporter CrpA to expel excess Cu.

The Essential Thioredoxin Reductase of the Human Pathogenic Mold Is a Promising Antifungal Target.

The identification of cellular targets for antifungal compounds is a cornerstone for the development of novel antimycotics, for which a significant need exists due to increasing numbers of susceptible patients, emerging pathogens, and evolving resistance. For the human pathogenic mold , the causative agent of the opportunistic disease aspergillosis, only a limited number of established targets and corresponding drugs are available. Among several targets that were postulated from a variety of experimental approaches, the conserved thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) activity encoded by the gene was assessed in this study.

Arginine Auxotrophy Affects Siderophore Biosynthesis and Attenuates Virulence of .

is an opportunistic human pathogen mainly infecting immunocompromised patients. The aim of this study was to characterize the role of arginine biosynthesis in virulence of via genetic inactivation of two key arginine biosynthetic enzymes, the bifunctional acetylglutamate synthase/ornithine acetyltransferase (/AFUA_5G08120) and the ornithine carbamoyltransferase (/AFUA_4G07190). Arginine biosynthesis is intimately linked to the biosynthesis of ornithine, a precursor for siderophore production that has previously been shown to be essential for virulence in .

The leucine biosynthetic pathway is crucial for adaptation to iron starvation and virulence in .

In contrast to mammalia, fungi are able to synthesize the branched-chain amino acid leucine . Recently, the transcription factor LeuB has been shown to cross-regulate leucine biosynthesis, nitrogen metabolism and iron homeostasis in , the most common human mold pathogen. Moreover, the leucine biosynthetic pathway intermediate α-isopropylmalate (α-IPM) has previously been shown to posttranslationally activate LeuB homologs in and .

Siroheme Is Essential for Assimilation of Nitrate and Sulfate as Well as Detoxification of Nitric Oxide but Dispensable for Murine Virulence of .

The saprophytic mold is the most common airborne fungal pathogen causing severe invasive fungal infections in immunocompromised patients. Siroheme is a heme-like prosthetic group used by plants and microorganisms for sulfate and nitrate assimilation but is absent in higher eukaryotes. Here, we investigated the role of siroheme in by deletion of the gene encoding the bifunctional dehydrogenase/ferrochelatase enzyme Met8.

Contribution of ATPase copper transporters in animal but not plant virulence of the crossover pathogen Aspergillus flavus.

The ubiquitous fungus Aspergillus flavus is notorious for contaminating many important crops and food-stuffs with the carcinogenic mycotoxin, aflatoxin. This fungus is also the second most frequent Aspergillus pathogen after A. fumigatus infecting immunosuppressed patients.

Phenotypic and Proteomic Analysis of the Δ, Δ and Δ/Δ Protease-Deficient Mutants.

is the most common mold species to cause disease in immunocompromised patients. Infection usually begins when its spores (conidia) are inhaled into the airways, where they germinate, forming hyphae that penetrate and destroy the lungs and disseminate to other organs, leading to high mortality. The ability of hyphae to penetrate the pulmonary epithelium is a key step in the infectious process.

The quinoline bromoquinol exhibits broad-spectrum antifungal activity and induces oxidative stress and apoptosis in Aspergillus fumigatus.

Objectives: Over the last 30 years, the number of invasive fungal infections among immunosuppressed patients has increased significantly, while the number of effective systemic antifungal drugs remains low. The aim of this study was to identify and characterize antifungal compounds that inhibit fungus-specific metabolic pathways not conserved in humans.

Methods: We screened a diverse compound library for antifungal activity in the pathogenic mould Aspergillus fumigatus .

Aspergillus fumigatus Copper Export Machinery and Reactive Oxygen Intermediate Defense Counter Host Copper-Mediated Oxidative Antimicrobial Offense.

The Fenton-chemistry-generating properties of copper ions are considered a potent phagolysosome defense against pathogenic microbes, yet our understanding of underlying host/microbe dynamics remains unclear. We address this issue in invasive aspergillosis and demonstrate that host and fungal responses inextricably connect copper and reactive oxygen intermediate (ROI) mechanisms. Loss of the copper-binding transcription factor AceA yields an Aspergillus fumigatus strain displaying increased sensitivity to copper and ROI in vitro, increased intracellular copper concentrations, decreased survival in challenge with murine alveolar macrophages (AMΦs), and reduced virulence in a non-neutropenic murine model.

Mechanisms of Bacterial (Serratia marcescens) Attachment to, Migration along, and Killing of Fungal Hyphae.

We have found a remarkable capacity for the ubiquitous Gram-negative rod bacterium Serratia marcescens to migrate along and kill the mycelia of zygomycete molds. This migration was restricted to zygomycete molds and several basidiomycete species. No migration was seen on any molds of the phylum Ascomycota.

Novel Water-Soluble Amphotericin B-PEG Conjugates with Low Toxicity and Potent in Vivo Efficacy.

Systemic fungal infections are an increasingly prevalent health problem, especially among immunocompromised patients. Antifungal drug development lags far behind in comparison to other types of antimicrobial drugs. Current commercially available antifungals are limited by their insufficient potency, side effects, drug-drug interactions, developing drug-resistance, and narrow formulation options.

The three Aspergillus fumigatus CFEM-domain GPI-anchored proteins (CfmA-C) affect cell-wall stability but do not play a role in fungal virulence.

Fungal cell-wall proteins containing the conserved fungal CFEM domain have been implicated in host-pathogen interactions and virulence. To determine the role of these proteins in the mold pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus, we deleted the entire family of three CFEM-containing genes (CfmA-C), singly and in all combinations. We found an additive increase in the susceptibility of the single, double and triple ΔCfm mutants towards the chitin/β-glucan-microfibril destabilizing compounds Congo Red (CR) and Calcofluor White (CFW), indicating that the A.

Trivalent ultrashort lipopeptides are potent pH dependent antifungal agents.

The activity of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that contain a large proportion of histidine residues (pK(a) ∼ 6) depends on the physiological pH environment. Advantages of these AMPs include high activity in slightly acidic areas of the human body and relatively low toxicity in other areas. Also, many AMPs are highly active in a multivalent form, but this often increases toxicity.

Ultrashort peptide bioconjugates are exclusively antifungal agents and synergize with cyclodextrin and amphotericin B.

Many natural broad-spectrum cationic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) possess a general mode of action that is dependent on lipophilicity and charge. Modulating the lipophilicity of AMPs by the addition of a fatty acid has been an effective strategy to increase the lytic activity and can further broaden the spectrum of AMPs. However, lipophilic modifications that narrow the spectrum of activity and exclusively direct peptides to fungi are less common.

PrtT-regulated proteins secreted by Aspergillus fumigatus activate MAPK signaling in exposed A549 lung cells leading to necrotic cell death.

Aspergillus fumigatus is the most commonly encountered mold pathogen of humans, predominantly infecting the respiratory system. Colonization and penetration of the lung alveolar epithelium is a key but poorly understood step in the infection process. This study focused on identifying the transcriptional and cell-signaling responses activated in A549 alveolar carcinoma cells incubated in the presence of A.

The Aspergillus fumigatus cspA gene encoding a repeat-rich cell wall protein is important for normal conidial cell wall architecture and interaction with host cells.

cspA (for cell surface protein A) encodes a repeat-rich glycophosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored cell wall protein (CWP) in the pathogenic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. The number of repeats in cspA varies among isolates, and this trait is used for typing closely related strains of A. fumigatus.