Latest Articles
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyIdentification of Recessive Lethal Alleles in the Diploid Genome of a Candida albicans Laboratory Strain Unveils a Potential Role of Repetitive Sequences in Buffering Their Deleterious ImpactCandida albicans is a major fungal pathogen, whose mode of reproduction is mainly clonal. Its genome is highly tolerant to rearrangements, in particular loss of heterozygosity events, known to unmask recessive lethal and deleterious alleles in heterozygous diploid organisms such as C. albicans. By...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyTranscriptional Sequencing Uncovers Survival Mechanisms of Salmonella enterica Serovar Enteritidis in Antibacterial Egg WhiteSalmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis is a major foodborne pathogen that causes salmonellosis mainly through contaminated chicken eggs or egg products and has been a worldwide public health threat since 1980. Frequent outbreaks of this serotype through eggs correlate significantly with its exceptional survival ability in the antibacterial egg white. Research on the...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyA Controlled Human Infection Model of Group A Streptococcus Pharyngitis: Which Strain and Why?GAS (Streptococcus pyogenes) is a leading global cause of infection-related morbidity and mortality. A modern CHIM of GAS pharyngitis could help to accelerate vaccine development and drive pathogenesis research. Challenge strain selection is critical to the safety and success of any CHIM and especially so for an organism such as GAS, with its wide strain diversity and...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionDose-Dependent Differences in HIV Inhibition by Different Interferon Alpha Subtypes While Having Overall Similar Biologic EffectsElucidating the functional role of the IFN-α subtypes is of particular importance for the development of efficacious therapies using exogenous IFN-α. Specifically, this will help define whether IFN therapy should be based on the use of pathogen-dependent IFN subtypes or, rather, IFN mutants with optimized IFNAR binding properties.
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionAnticytomegalovirus Peptides Point to New Insights for CMV Entry Mechanisms and the Limitations of In Vitro ScreeningsIn the absence of an effective vaccine to prevent HCMV infections, alternative interventions must be developed. Prevention of viral entry into susceptible cells is an attractive alternative strategy. Here we report that heparan sulfate-binding peptides effectively inhibit entry into fibroblasts of in vitro-derived CMVs and partially inhibit in vivo-derived CMVs. This includes the inhibition of urine-derived HCMV (uCMV...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyVraSR and Virulence Trait Modulation during Daptomycin Resistance in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus InfectionMethicillin-resistant S. aureus continues to develop resistance to antimicrobials, including those in current clinical use as daptomycin (DAP). Resistance to DAP arises by mutations in cell membrane and cell wall genes and/or upregulation of the two-component VraSR system. However, less is known about the connection between the pathogen and virulence traits during DAP...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionDectin-1-Targeted Antifungal Liposomes Exhibit Enhanced EfficacyThe fungus Aspergillus fumigatus causes pulmonary invasive aspergillosis resulting in nearly 100,000 deaths each year. Patients are often treated with antifungal drugs such as amphotericin B (AmB) loaded into liposomes (AmB-LLs), but all antifungal drugs, including AmB-LLs, have serious limitations due to human toxicity and insufficient fungal cell killing. Even with...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Synthetic BiologyA CRISPR Interference Platform for Efficient Genetic Repression in Candida albicansFungal pathogens are an increasingly important cause of human disease and mortality, and Candida albicans is among the most common causes of fungal disease. Studying this important fungal pathogen requires a comprehensive genetic toolkit to establish how different genetic factors play roles in the biology and virulence of this pathogen. Here, we developed a CRISPR-...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyImplementation of a CRISPR-Based System for Gene Regulation in Candida albicansCRISPR technology is a new and efficient way to edit genomes, but it is also an appealing way to regulate gene expression. We have implemented CRISPR as a gene expression platform in Candida albicans using fusions between a Cas9 inactive enzyme and specific repressors or activators and demonstrated its functionality. This will allow future manipulation of complex...
