Dynamic expression of candidalysin facilitates oral colonization of Candida albicans in mice
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Candida albicans is a common fungal member of the human microbiota but can also cause infections via expression of virulence factors associated with the yeast-to-hyphae transition. The evolutionary selection pressure to retain these pathogenic traits for a commensal microorganism remains unclear. Here we show that filamentation and hyphae-associated factors, including the toxin candidalysin, are crucial for colonization of the oral cavity, a major reservoir of C. albicans. Low-virulent strains of C. albicans expressed the candidalysin-encoding gene ECE1 transiently upon exposure to keratinocytes in vitro. In mice, ECE1 mutants were defective at accessing terminally differentiated oral epithelial layers where the fungus is protected from IL-17-mediated immune defence. Tight regulation of ECE1 expression prevented detrimental effects of candidalysin on the host. Our results suggest that hyphae-associated factors such as candidalysin govern not only pathogenicity, but also mucosal colonization through direct host interactions enabling C. albicans to create and maintain its niche in the oral mucosa.
Source: Nature Microbiology
Institutions: University of Zurich, Leibniz-Institut für Naturstoff-Forschung und Infektionsbiologie e. V. - Hans-Knöll-Institut (HKI), Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, University of Lausanne, University of Exeter, MRC Centre for Medical Mycology
Language: English
Subfield: Infectious Diseases
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $12,690
Funders: National Science Foundation, Novartis Foundation, European Commission, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Agence Nationale de la Recherche, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, Novartis Stiftung für Medizinisch-Biologische Forschung, Uniscientia Stiftung, Uniscientia Foundation
Awards: Deciphering the fungus-host-microbiota interplay to improve the management of fungal infections, G1979782309, G2092766648, G2499912212, G281949974, G282427092, G434337789, Multidisciplinary approaches to identify genetic determinants of Candida albicans pathogenicity, EXC 2051: Balance of the Microverse, TRR 124: Pathogene Pilze und ihr menschlicher Wirt: Netzwerke der Interaktion, G7078166968, G7240651115, Integrative Biology of Emerging Infectious Diseases, G812414212, G8670608220, G8836011163
OpenAlex ID: W4414524177