Short Peptides Allowing Preferential Detection of Candida albicans Hyphae

Abstract

Whereas the detection of pathogens via recognition of surface structures by specific antibodies and various types of antibody mimics is frequently described, the applicability of short linear peptides as sensor molecules or diagnostic tools is less well-known. We selected peptides which were previously reported to bind to recombinant S. cerevisiae cells, expressing members of the C. albicans Agglutinin-Like-Sequence (ALS) cell wall protein family. We slightly modified amino acid sequences to evaluate peptide sequence properties influencing binding to C. albicans cells. Among the selected peptides, decamer peptides with an "AP"-N-terminus were superior to shorter peptides. The new decamer peptide FBP4 stained viable C. albicans cells more efficiently in their mature hyphal form than in their yeast form. Moreover, it allowed distinction of C. albicans from other related Candida spp. and could thus be the basis for the development of a useful tool for the diagnosis of invasive candidiasis.

Characterization of Key Bio–Nano Interactions between Organosilica Nanoparticles and Candida albicans

“…25 Therefore, we also tested the viability and nanoparticle association of C. albicans in the presence of serum at 37 °C, which is the condition that mimics a blood-like environment and stimulates hyphal growth 26 (Figure 4). Given the challenge of analyzing hyphal cells by flow cytometry, 27 we used fluorescence microscopy for these experiments. 800NP PEG particles were chosen because of the relatively high association observed with yeast cells (Figure 3).…”