Functional characterization of age3 gene in the pathogenic fungi Aspergillus fumigatus

• Grant number: 11/00732-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2011
• End date: July 31, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Pharmacy
• Principal Investigator: Marcia Regina von Zeska Kress
• Grantee: Ana Carolina Gratieri Maciel
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto (FCFRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Aspergillus fumigatus is a saprophytic filamentous fungus that causes invasive fungal infection, a serious risk to the health of hospitalized patients. The invasive fungal infection treatment remains a challenge due to the limited availability in the number of antifungal drugs approved for the clinical use. The antifungal drugs need to have selective toxicity to fungi, however the evolutionary proximity between fungi and human host difficulties the development of new drugs for the antifungal therapy, which justifies the high development of tolerance and resistance of the fungi to the antifungal treatment available in market. The gene member of ADP Ribosylation Factor (ARF) family, age3 (gcs1), were related with resistance to antifungal in other microorganisms (Candida albicans e Saccharomyces cerevisiae - Epp et al., 2010, Cowen e Linquist, 2005). In A. fumigatus, through the similarity analysis, were possible identify the homologous gene of gcs1 (Afu5g07130). To characterize gcs1 gene in A. fumigatus will be performed the deletion of this gene to further microscopic observation of mutants and characterization of the growth profile in presence of different drugs.