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Ni Y, Qiao Y, Tian X, Li H, Meng Y, Li C, Du W, Sun T, Zhu K, Huang W, Yan H, Li J, Zhou R, Ding C, Gao X. Unraveling the mechanism of thermotolerance by Set302 in Cryptococcus neoformans. Microbiol Spectr 2024:e0420223. [PMID: 38874428 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04202-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024] Open
Abstract
The underlying mechanism of thermotolerance, which is a key virulence factor essential for pathogenic fungi such as Cryptococcus neoformans, is largely unexplored. In this study, our findings suggest that Set302, a homolog of Set3 and a subunit of histone deacetylase complex Set3C, contributes to thermotolerance in C. neoformans. Specifically, the deletion of the predicted Set3C core subunit, Set302, resulted in further reduction in the growth of C. neoformans at 39°C, and survival of transient incubation at 50°C. Transcriptomics analysis revealed that the expression levels of numerous heat stress-responsive genes altered at both 30°C and 39°C due to the lack of Set302. Notably, at 39°C, the absence of Set302 led to the downregulation of gene expression related to the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS). Based on the GFP-α-synuclein overexpression model to characterize misfolded proteins, we observed a pronounced accumulation of misfolded GFP-α-synuclein at 39°C, consequently inhibiting C. neoformans thermotolerance. Furthermore, the loss of Set302 exacerbated the accumulation of misfolded GFP-α-synuclein during heat stress. Interestingly, the set302∆ strain exhibited a similar phenotype under proteasome stress as it did at 39°C. Moreover, the absence of Set302 led to reduced production of capsule and melanin. set302∆ strain also displayed significantly reduced pathogenicity and colonization ability compared to the wild-type strain in the murine infection model. Collectively, our findings suggest that Set302 modulates thermotolerance by affecting the degradation of misfolded proteins and multiple virulence factors to mediate the pathogenicity of C. neoformans.IMPORTANCECryptococcus neoformans is a pathogenic fungus that poses a potential and significant threat to public health. Thermotolerance plays a crucial role in the wide distribution in natural environments and host colonization of this fungus. Herein, Set302, a critical core subunit for the integrity of histone deacetylase complex Set3C and widely distributed in various fungi and mammals, governs thermotolerance and affects survival at extreme temperatures as well as the formation of capsule and melanin in C. neoformans. Additionally, Set302 participates in regulating the expression of multiple genes associated with the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS). By eliminating misfolded proteins under heat stress, Set302 significantly contributes to the thermotolerance of C. neoformans. Moreover, Set302 regulates the pathogenicity and colonization ability of C. neoformans in a murine model. Overall, this study provides new insight into the mechanism of thermotolerance in C. neoformans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Ni
- College of Life and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Yue Qiao
- College of Life and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Xing Tian
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Hailong Li
- NHC Key Laboratory of AIDS Immunology, National Clinical Research Center for Laboratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Yang Meng
- College of Life and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Chao Li
- College of Life and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Wei Du
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, National Clinical Research Center for Laboratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Tianshu Sun
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Mechanisms Research and Precision Diagnosis of Invasive Fungal Diseases, Beijing, China
- Medical Research Centre, State Key Laboratory of Complex Severe and Rare Diseases, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Keting Zhu
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Wei Huang
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - He Yan
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Jia Li
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Renjie Zhou
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chen Ding
- College of Life and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Xindi Gao
- Department of Emergency, Xinqiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
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Pan S, Yuan T, Xia Y, Yu W, Zhou X, Cheng F. Role of Histone Modifications in Kidney Fibrosis. MEDICINA (KAUNAS, LITHUANIA) 2024; 60:888. [PMID: 38929505 PMCID: PMC11205584 DOI: 10.3390/medicina60060888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2024] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by persistent kidney dysfunction, ultimately resulting in end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Renal fibrosis is a crucial pathological feature of CKD and ESRD. However, there is no effective treatment for this condition. Despite the complex molecular mechanisms involved in renal fibrosis, increasing evidence highlights the crucial role of histone modification in its regulation. The reversibility of histone modifications offers promising avenues for therapeutic strategies to block or reverse renal fibrosis. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of the regulatory implications of histone modifications in fibrosis may provide novel insights into more effective and safer therapeutic approaches. This review highlights the regulatory mechanisms and recent advances in histone modifications in renal fibrosis, particularly histone methylation and histone acetylation. The aim is to explore the potential of histone modifications as targets for treating renal fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Xiangjun Zhou
- Department of Urology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, China; (S.P.); (T.Y.); (Y.X.); (W.Y.)
| | - Fan Cheng
- Department of Urology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, China; (S.P.); (T.Y.); (Y.X.); (W.Y.)
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Chen M, Liu Y, Liu Z, Su L, Yan L, Huang Y, Huang Y, Zhang W, Xu X, Zheng F. Histone acetyltransferase Gcn5-mediated histone H3 acetylation facilitates cryptococcal morphogenesis and sexual reproduction. mSphere 2023; 8:e0029923. [PMID: 37850793 PMCID: PMC10732044 DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00299-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Eukaryotic gene transcription is typically regulated by a series of histone modifications, which play a crucial role in adapting to complex environmental stresses. In the ubiquitous human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, sexual life cycle is a continuous intracellular differentiation process that strictly occurs in response to mating stimulation. Despite the comprehensive identification of the regulatory factors and genetic pathways involved in its sexual cycle, understanding of the epigenetic modifications involved in this process remains quite limited. In this research, we found that histone acetyltransferase Gcn5-mediated histone H3 acetylation plays a crucial role in completing the cryptococcal sexual cycle, including yeast-hyphae morphogenesis and the subsequent sexual reproduction. Furthermore, we demonstrated that Gcn5 participates in this process primarily through regulating the key morphogenesis regulator Znf2 and its targets. This study thus provided a comprehensive understanding of how histone acetylation modification impacts sexual life cycle in a high-risk human pathogenic fungus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Man Chen
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Yuanli Liu
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Gannan Medical College, Ganzhou, Jiangxi, China
| | - Zhuozhuo Liu
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Lin Su
- Department of Geriatric Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Lili Yan
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Hospital of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Yuan Huang
- Department of Geriatric Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Ye Huang
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Hospital of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Xinping Xu
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Hospital of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Fanglin Zheng
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jiangxi Institute of Respiratory Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
- Jiangxi Hospital of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
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Li XY, Yu JT, Dong YH, Shen XY, Hou R, Xie MM, Wei J, Hu XW, Dong ZH, Shan RR, Jin J, Shao W, Meng XM. Protein acetylation and related potential therapeutic strategies in kidney disease. Pharmacol Res 2023; 197:106950. [PMID: 37820854 DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2023.106950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Revised: 09/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Kidney disease can be caused by various internal and external factors that have led to a continual increase in global deaths. Current treatment methods can alleviate but do not markedly prevent disease development. Further research on kidney disease has revealed the crucial function of epigenetics, especially acetylation, in the pathology and physiology of the kidney. Histone acetyltransferases (HATs), histone deacetylases (HDACs), and acetyllysine readers jointly regulate acetylation, thus affecting kidney physiological homoeostasis. Recent studies have shown that acetylation improves mechanisms and pathways involved in various types of nephropathy. The discovery and application of novel inhibitors and activators have further confirmed the important role of acetylation. In this review, we provide insights into the physiological process of acetylation and summarise its specific mechanisms and potential therapeutic effects on renal pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang-Yu Li
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Ju-Tao Yu
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Yu-Hang Dong
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Xiao-Yu Shen
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Rui Hou
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Man-Man Xie
- School of Life Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Jie Wei
- Department of Nephrology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, 678 Furong Road, Hefei 230601, Anhui, China
| | - Xiao-Wei Hu
- Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Anhui Provincial Children's Hospital, Hefei 230051, China
| | - Ze-Hui Dong
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Run-Run Shan
- School of Life Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Juan Jin
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230601, China
| | - Wei Shao
- School of Basic Medicine, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China.
| | - Xiao-Ming Meng
- Inflammation and Immune Mediated Diseases Laboratory of Anhui Province, the Key Laboratory of Anti-inflammatory of Immune Medicines, Ministry of Education, Anhui Institute of Innovative Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China.
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Identification and Characterization of an Intergenic “Safe Haven” Region in Human Fungal Pathogen Cryptococcus gattii. J Fungi (Basel) 2022; 8:jof8020178. [PMID: 35205930 PMCID: PMC8874978 DOI: 10.3390/jof8020178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Cryptococcus gattii is a primary fungal pathogen, which causes pulmonary and brain infections in healthy as well as immunocompromised individuals. Genetic manipulations in this pathogen are widely employed to study its biology and pathogenesis, and require integration of foreign DNA into the genome. Thus, identification of gene free regions where integrated foreign DNA can be expressed without influencing, or being influenced by, nearby genes would be extremely valuable. To achieve this goal, we examined publicly available genomes and transcriptomes of C. gattii, and identified two intergenic regions in the reference strain R265 as potential “safe haven” regions, named as CgSH1 and CgSH2. We found that insertion of a fluorescent reporter gene and a selection marker at these two intergenic regions did not affect the expression of their neighboring genes and were also expressed efficiently, as expected. Furthermore, DNA integration at CgSH1 or CgSH2 had no apparent effect on the growth of C. gattii, its response to various stresses, or phagocytosis by macrophages. Thus, the identified safe haven regions in C. gattii provide an effective tool for researchers to reduce variation and increase reproducibility in genetic experiments.
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Murcia-Garzón J, Méndez-Tenorio A. Promiscuous Domains in Eukaryotes and HAT Proteins in FUNGI Have Followed Different Evolutionary Paths. J Mol Evol 2022; 90:124-138. [PMID: 35084521 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-021-10046-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Diverse studies have shown that the content of genes present in sequenced genomes does not seem to correlate with the complexity of the organisms. However, various studies have shown that organism complexity and the size of the proteome has, indeed, a significant correlation. This characteristic allows us to postulate that some molecular mechanisms have permitted a greater functional diversity to some proteins to increase their participation in developing organisms with higher complexity. Among those mechanisms, the domain promiscuity, defined as the ability of the domains to organize in combination with other distinct domains, is of great importance for the evolution of organisms. Previous works have analyzed the degree of domain promiscuity of the proteomes showing how it seems to have paralleled the evolution of eukaryotic organisms. The latter has motivated the present study, where we analyzed the domain promiscuity in a collection of 84 eukaryotic proteomes representative of all the taxonomy groups of the tree of life. Using a grammar definition approach, we determined the architecture of 1,223,227 proteins, conformed by 2,296,371 domains, which established 839,184 bigram types. The phylogenetic reconstructions based on differences in the content of information from measures of proteome promiscuity confirm that the evolution of the promiscuity of domains in eukaryotic organisms resembles the evolutionary history of the species. However, a close analysis of the PHD and RING domains, the most promiscuous domains found in fungi and functional components of chromatin remodeling enzymes and important expression regulators, suggests an evolution according to their function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jazmín Murcia-Garzón
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Vegetal, Centro de Biotecnología Genómica, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Boulevard del Maestro S/N esq. Elías Piña, Col. Narciso Mendoza, 88710, Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico
| | - Alfonso Méndez-Tenorio
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología y Bioinformática Genómica, Departamento de Bioquímica, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Prol. de Carpio y Plan de Ayala s/n, Col. Santo Tomás, 11340, Mexico City, Mexico.
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The PHD transcription factor Cti6 is involved in the fungal colonization and aflatoxin B1 biological synthesis of Aspergillus flavus. IMA Fungus 2021; 12:12. [PMID: 34006318 PMCID: PMC8130384 DOI: 10.1186/s43008-021-00062-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Aspergillus flavus and its main secondary metabolite AFB1 pose a serious threat to several important crops worldwide. Recently, it has been reported that some PHD family transcription factors are involved in the morphogenesis and AFB1 biological synthesis in A. flavus, but the role of Cti6, a PHD domain containing protein in A. flavus, is totally unknown. The study was designed to reveal the biological function of Cti6 in the fungus by deletion of cti6, and its two domains (PHD and Atrophin-1) through homologous recombination, respectively. The results showed that Cti6 might up-regulate the mycelium growth, conidiation, sclerotia formation and AFB1 biological synthesis of A. flavus by its PHD domain, while Atrophin-1 also improved the conidiation of the fungus. The qRT-PCR analysis showed that Cti6 increased the conidiation of the fungus through AbaA and BrlA mediated conidiation pathway, triggered the formation of sclerotia by orthodox sclerotia formation pathway, and improved the production of AFB1 by orthodox AFB1 synthesis pathway. Crops models analysis showed that A. flavus Cti6 plays vital role in colonization and the production of AFB1 on the host grains mainly via PHD domain. Bioinformatics analysis showed Cti6 is conservative in Aspergillus spp., and mCherry mediated subcellular localization showed that most Cti6 accumulated in the nuclei, which reflected that Cti6 performed its important biological function in the nuclei in Aspergillus spp.. The results of the current study elucidate the roles of PHD domain containing proteins in the mechanism of the infection of crops by A. flavus, and provided a novel target for effectively controlling the contamination of Aspergillus spp. to crops.
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Zhao Y, Lin X. Cryptococcus neoformans: Sex, morphogenesis, and virulence. INFECTION GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 2021; 89:104731. [PMID: 33497839 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2021.104731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2020] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Cryptococcus neoformans is a dimorphic fungus that causes lethal meningoencephalitis mainly in immunocompromised individuals. Different morphotypes enable this environmental fungus and opportunistic pathogen to adapt to different natural niches and exhibit different levels of pathogenicity in various hosts. It is well-recognized that C. neoformans undergoes bisexual or unisexual reproduction in vitro to generate genotypic, morphotypic, and phenotypic diversity, which augments its ability for adaptation. However, if and how sexual reproduction and the meiotic machinery exert any direct impact on the infection process is unclear. This review summarizes recent discoveries on the regulation of cryptococcal life cycle and morphogenesis, and how they impact cryptococcal pathogenicity. The potential role of the meiotic machinery on ploidy regulation during cryptococcal infection is also discussed. This review aims to stimulate further investigation on links between fungal morphogenesis, sexual reproduction, and virulence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youbao Zhao
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, PR China; Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
| | - Xiaorong Lin
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
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Fan Y, Lin X. An intergenic "safe haven" region in Cryptococcus neoformans serotype D genomes. Fungal Genet Biol 2020; 144:103464. [PMID: 32947034 PMCID: PMC7726056 DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2020.103464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2020] [Revised: 09/05/2020] [Accepted: 09/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Cryptococcus neoformans is an opportunistic human fungal pathogen and serves as a model organism for studies of eukaryotic microbiology and microbial pathogenesis. C. neoformans species complex is classified into serotype A, serotype D, and AD hybrids, which are currently considered different subspecies. Different serotype strains display varied phenotypes, virulence, and gene regulation. Genetic investigation of important pathways is often performed in both serotype A and D reference strains in order to identify diversification or conservation of the interrogated signaling network. Many genetic tools have been developed for C. neoformans serotype A reference strain H99, including the gene free "safe haven" (SH) regions for DNA integration identified based on genomic features. However, no such a genomic safe haven region has been identified in serotype D strains. Here, capitalizing on the available genomic, transcriptomic, and chromatin data, we identified an intergenic region named as SH3 for the serotype D reference strains JEC21 and XL280. We also designed a sgRNA and a vector facilitating any alien gene integration into SH3 through a CRISPR-Cas9 system. We found that gene inserted in this region complemented the corresponding gene deletion mutant. Fluorescent reporter gene inserted in SH3 can also be expressed efficiently. Insertion in SH3 itself did not alter the expression of adjacent genes and did not affect the growth or mating of C. neoformans. Thus, SH3 provides a resource for genetic manipulations in serotype D strains and will facilitate comparative analyses of gene functions in this species complex. In addition, the incorporation of the multi-omic data in our selection of the safe haven region could help similar studies in other organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumeng Fan
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens 30602, GA, USA
| | - Xiaorong Lin
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens 30602, GA, USA.
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Abstract
Cryptococcus neoformans is a ubiquitous environmental fungus and an opportunistic pathogen that causes fatal cryptococcal meningitis. Advances in genomics, genetics, and cellular and molecular biology of C. neoformans have dramatically improved our understanding of this important pathogen, rendering it a model organism to study eukaryotic biology and microbial pathogenesis. In light of recent progress, we describe in this review the life cycle of C. neoformans with a special emphasis on the regulation of the yeast-to-hypha transition and different modes of sexual reproduction, in addition to the impacts of the life cycle on cryptococcal populations and pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youbao Zhao
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602; , , ,
| | - Jianfeng Lin
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602; , , ,
| | - Yumeng Fan
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602; , , ,
| | - Xiaorong Lin
- Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602; , , ,
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