Evaluation of &ITCaenorhabditis elegans&IT as a host model for &ITParacoccidioides brasiliensis &ITand &ITParacoccidioides lutzii&IT

Author(s)

Scorzoni, Liliana ^[1] ; Pilar de Lucas, Maria ^{[1, 2]} ; Singulani, Junya de lacorte ; de Oliveira, Haroldo Cesar ^[1] ; Assato, Patricia Akemi ^[1] ; Fusco-Almeida, Ana Marisa ^[1] ; Soares Mendes-Giannini, Maria Jose ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Paulista UNESP, Fac Ciencias Farmaceut, Dept Anal Clin, Lab Micol Clin, Araraquara - Brazil

^[2] Inst Salud Carlos III, Unidad Func Invest Enfermedades Cron, Unidad Biol Celular, Majadahonda - Spain

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: PATHOGENS AND DISEASE; v. 76, n. 1 FEB 2018.
• Web of Science Citations: 1

Abstract

Paracoccidioidomycosis is a systemic fungal infection affecting mainly Latin American countries that is caused by Paracoccidioides brasiliensis and Paracoccidioides lutzii. During the study of fungal pathogenesis, in vivo studies are crucial to understand the overall mechanisms involving the infection as well as to search for new therapeutic treatments and diagnosis. Caenorhabditis elegans is described as an infection model for different fungi species and a well-characterized organism to study the innate immune response. This study evaluates C. elegans as an infection model for Paracoccidioides spp. It was observed that both species do not cause infection in C. elegans, as occurs with Candida albicans, and one possible explanation is that the irregular size and shape of Paracoccidioides spp. difficult the ingestion of these fungi by the nematode. Besides this difficulty in the infection, we could observe that the simple exposition of C. elegans to Paracoccidioides species was able to trigger a distinct pattern of expression of antimicrobial peptide genes. The expression of cnc-4, nlpl-27 and nlp-31 was superior after the exposure to P. brasiliensis in comparison to P. lutzii (P < 0.05), and these findings demonstrate important differences regarding innate immune response activation caused by the two species of the Paracoccidioides genus. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/10446-9 - Evaluation of new therapies and biomarkers in paracoccidioidomycosis: antifungal activity of alkyl gallates in alternative models and mice and identification of circulating microRNAs
• Grantee: Junya de Lacorte Singulani
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 15/03700-9 - Alternative animal as a model to study Paracoccidioides- host interaction: virulence, efficacy and toxicology of antifungal compounds and new preventive treatments
• Grantee: Maria José Soares Mendes Giannini
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 13/10917-9 - Alternative animal models: Virulence of different phylogenetic species of Paracoccidioides and effect of the 30kDa 43kDa protein and their antibodies
• Grantee: Liliana Scorzoni
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 15/14023-8 - Use of peptides with anti-adhesive activity in Paracoccidoides spp. in the treatment and prophylaxis of the paracoccidioidomycosis
• Grantee: Haroldo Cesar de Oliveira
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral