Production evaluation and composition of extracellular vesicles by Candida haemulonii

• Grant number: 20/02841-6
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Effective date (Start): February 01, 2021
• Effective date (End): January 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry - Biochemistry of Microorganisms
• Principal researcher: Fausto Bruno dos Reis Almeida
• Grantee: Bianca Teixeira Morais de Oliveira
• Home Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Candida haemulonii is an emerging and multidrug-resistant pathogen to the main antifungals available. The development of the infection is associated to the release of molecules on the environment, as occurs during the secretion of extracellular vesicles (EVs) that pass through the fungal cell wall to reach the extracellular space.Fungal EVs are composed of different biomolecules such as proteins, lipids, toxins and nucleic acids, which when exported can be crucial in the pathophysiological process.In the last few months, preliminary results from our research group, verified the production of EVs by C. haemulonii, which motivates the proposal to determine their production and composition. Specifically, we propose to fulfill the following objectives: (1) Investigate the production of EVs by C. haemulonii; (2) Sequencing the total RNA from the yeast and the EVs components produced; (3) Identify the proteome of the vesicles obtained.Our expectation is that the determination of EVs composition by C. haemulonii will reveal important molecules, which play crucial roles in the development of fungal infection. (AU)