| Full text | |
| Author(s): |
Santos, Ronaldo Silva
;
Martins-Silva, Gabriel
;
Padilla, Adrian Adolfo Alvarez
;
Possari, Mateus
;
Degello, Sergio Donnantuoni
;
Brustolini, Otavio J. Bernardes
;
Vasconcelos, Ana Tereza Ribeiro
;
Vallim, Marcelo Afonso
;
Pascon, Renata C.
Total Authors: 9
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | JOURNAL OF FUNGI; v. 10, n. 8, p. 25-pg., 2024-08-01. |
| Abstract | |
Stress management is an adaptive advantage for survival in adverse environments. Pathogens face this challenge during host colonization, requiring an appropriate stress response to establish infection. The fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans undergoes thermal, oxidative, and osmotic stresses in the environment and animal host. Signaling systems controlled by Ras1, Hog1, and calcineurin respond to high temperatures and osmotic stress. Cationic stress caused by Na+, K+, and Li+ can be overcome with glycerol, the preferred osmolyte. Deleting the glycerol phosphate phosphatase gene (GPP2) prevents cells from accumulating glycerol due to a block in the last step of its biosynthetic pathway. Gpp2 accumulates in a phosphorylated form in a cna1 Delta strain, and a physical interaction between Gpp2 and Cna1 was found; moreover, the gpp2 Delta strain undergoes slow growth and has attenuated virulence in animal models of infection. We provide biochemical evidence that growth in 1 M NaCl increases glycerol content in the wild type, whereas gpp2 Delta, cna1 Delta, and cnb1 Delta mutants fail to accumulate it. The deletion of cnb1 Delta or cna1 Delta renders yeast cells sensitive to cationic stress, and the Gfp-Gpp2 protein assumes an abnormal localization. We suggest a mechanism in which calcineurin controls Gpp2 at the post-translational level, affecting its localization and activity, leading to glycerol biosynthesis. Also, we showed the transcriptional profile of glycerol-deficient mutants and established the cationic stress response mediated by calcineurin; among the biological processes differentially expressed are carbon utilization, translation, transmembrane transport, glutathione metabolism, oxidative stress response, and transcription regulation. To our knowledge, this is the first time that this transcriptional profile has been described. These results have implications for pathogen stress adaptability. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 15/04400-9 - The role of autophagy in Cryptococcus neorformas high temperature (37°C) growth and virulence |
| Grantee: | Marcelo Afonso Vallim |
| Support Opportunities: | Regular Research Grants |
| FAPESP's process: | 23/11339-0 - IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF MYCOSPORINE-PRODUCING YEASTS: A BIOTECHNOLOGICAL APPROACH TO NEW ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION BLOCKERS |
| Grantee: | Renata Castiglioni Pascon |
| Support Opportunities: | Regular Research Grants |
| FAPESP's process: | 23/08675-9 - Biosynthesis of mycosporins by Naganishia friedmannii: a biotechnological approach for the production of new sunscreens |
| Grantee: | Gabriel Martins da Silva |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Master |
| FAPESP's process: | 20/01000-8 - Cryptococcus neoformans and the relationship among virulence, sulfur metabolism and osmotic and oxidative stresses |
| Grantee: | Renata Castiglioni Pascon |
| Support Opportunities: | Regular Research Grants |
| FAPESP's process: | 22/03307-9 - Evaluation of mycosporin production and physiological characterization of the fungus Papiliotrema laurentii |
| Grantee: | Gabriel Martins da Silva |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation |
| FAPESP's process: | 21/14632-5 - Characterization of the Zinc cluster transcription factor: the role in the amino acid uptake pathway in Cryptococcus neoformans and its relationship to virulence |
| Grantee: | Mateus Possari de Oliveira |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Master |
| FAPESP's process: | 21/06290-7 - The calcineurin complex and the osmotic and oxidative stress response: the role of Gpp2 phosphatase and the sulfur amino acid biosynthesis pathway |
| Grantee: | Ronaldo Silva Santos |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Master |