Zebrafish Egg Infection Model for Studying Candida albicans Adhesion Factors

Chen, Yin-Zhi; Yang, Yun-Liang; Chu, Wen-Li; You, May-Su; Lo, Hsiu‐Jung

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0143048

Cited by 21 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 39 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The main advantage is that it is possible to analyze different biological processes due to the presence of organs and systems, providing complete raw data analysis for different fields of science (MacRae and Peterson, 2015). This model was useful for studying of the C. albicans virulence (Chao et al, 2010; Brothers et al, 2011; Chen et al, 2015) and C. neoformans pathogenesis (Tenor et al, 2015). Similar to chicken embryos, there is no description thus far of the evaluation of antifungal efficacy using zebrafish.…”

Section: Alternative Animal Models To Study Fungal Virulence and Antimentioning

confidence: 99%

Antifungal Therapy: New Advances in the Understanding and Treatment of Mycosis

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The high rates of morbidity and mortality caused by fungal infections are associated with the current limited antifungal arsenal and the high toxicity of the compounds. Additionally, identifying novel drug targets is challenging because there are many similarities between fungal and human cells. The most common antifungal targets include fungal RNA synthesis and cell wall and membrane components, though new antifungal targets are being investigated. Nonetheless, fungi have developed resistance mechanisms, such as overexpression of eﬄux pump proteins and biofilm formation, emphasizing the importance of understanding these mechanisms. To address these problems, different approaches to preventing and treating fungal diseases are described in this review, with a focus on the resistance mechanisms of fungi, with the goal of developing efficient strategies to overcoming and preventing resistance as well as new advances in antifungal therapy. Due to the limited antifungal arsenal, researchers have sought to improve treatment via different approaches, and the synergistic effect obtained by the combination of antifungals contributes to reducing toxicity and could be an alternative for treatment. Another important issue is the development of new formulations for antifungal agents, and interest in nanoparticles as new types of carriers of antifungal drugs has increased. In addition, modifications to the chemical structures of traditional antifungals have improved their activity and pharmacokinetic parameters. Moreover, a different approach to preventing and treating fungal diseases is immunotherapy, which involves different mechanisms, such as vaccines, activation of the immune response and inducing the production of host antimicrobial molecules. Finally, the use of a mini-host has been encouraging for in vivo testing because these animal models demonstrate a good correlation with the mammalian model; they also increase the speediness of as well as facilitate the preliminary testing of new antifungal agents. In general, many years are required from discovery of a new antifungal to clinical use. However, the development of new antifungal strategies will reduce the therapeutic time and/or increase the quality of life of patients.

show abstract

Section: Alternative Animal Models To Study Fungal Virulence and Antimentioning

confidence: 99%

Antifungal Therapy: New Advances in the Understanding and Treatment of Mycosis

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In a subsequent study, Chen et al utilized zebrafish eggs to study the gene functions in C . albicans and proposed that the zebrafish model is cost-effective and time-saving [102]. The advantage of using the zebrafish model is that it is less invasive compared to animal models.…”

Section: C Albicans Infection In Animal Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dissecting Candida albicans Infection from the Perspective of C. albicans Virulence and Omics Approaches on Host–Pathogen Interaction: A Review

Chin

Lee

Basir

et al. 2016

IJMS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Candida bloodstream infections remain the most frequent life-threatening fungal disease, with Candida albicans accounting for 70% to 80% of the Candida isolates recovered from infected patients. In nature, Candida species are part of the normal commensal flora in mammalian hosts. However, they can transform into pathogens once the host immune system is weakened or breached. More recently, mortality attributed to Candida infections has continued to increase due to both inherent and acquired drug resistance in Candida, the inefficacy of the available antifungal drugs, tedious diagnostic procedures, and a rising number of immunocompromised patients. Adoption of animal models, viz. minihosts, mice, and zebrafish, has brought us closer to unraveling the pathogenesis and complexity of Candida infection in human hosts, leading towards the discovery of biomarkers and identification of potential therapeutic agents. In addition, the advancement of omics technologies offers a holistic view of the Candida-host interaction in a non-targeted and non-biased manner. Hence, in this review, we seek to summarize past and present milestone findings on C. albicans virulence, adoption of animal models in the study of C. albicans infection, and the application of omics technologies in the study of Candida–host interaction. A profound understanding of the interaction between host defense and pathogenesis is imperative for better design of novel immunotherapeutic strategies in future.

show abstract

“…Zebrafish ( Danio rerio ) have been developed as an alternative model system for understanding interactions between microbial pathogens and the vertebrate host (Torraca et al, 2014 ). Experimental models using egg, larval, and adult zebrafish have been developed for C. albicans , and have examined both mucosal and disseminated disease (Chao et al, 2010 ; Brothers et al, 2011 ; Brothers and Wheeler, 2012 ; Gratacap et al, 2014 ; Chen et al, 2015 ). Zebrafish can be maintained at a wide range of temperatures (from 23 to 33°C), which allows for temperature-dependent phenomena to be investigated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phenotypic Plasticity Regulates Candida albicans Interactions and Virulence in the Vertebrate Host

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Phenotypic diversity is critical to the lifestyles of many microbial species, enabling rapid responses to changes in environmental conditions. In the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, cells exhibit heritable switching between two phenotypic states, white and opaque, which yield differences in mating, filamentous growth, and interactions with immune cells in vitro. Here, we address the in vivo virulence properties of the two cell states in a zebrafish model of infection. Multiple attributes were compared including the stability of phenotypic states, filamentation, virulence, dissemination, and phagocytosis by immune cells, and phenotypes equated across three different host temperatures. Importantly, we found that both white and opaque cells could establish a lethal systemic infection. The relative virulence of the two cell types was temperature dependent; virulence was similar at 25°C, but at higher temperatures (30 and 33°C) white cells were significantly more virulent than opaque cells. Despite the difference in virulence, fungal burden, and dissemination were similar between cells in the two states. Additionally, both white and opaque cells exhibited robust filamentation during infection and blocking filamentation resulted in decreased virulence, establishing that this program is critical for pathogenesis in both cell states. Interactions between C. albicans cells and immune cells differed between white and opaque states. Macrophages and neutrophils preferentially phagocytosed white cells over opaque cells in vitro, and neutrophils showed preferential phagocytosis of white cells in vivo. Together, these studies distinguish the properties of white and opaque cells in a vertebrate host, and establish that the two cell types demonstrate both important similarities and key differences during infection.

show abstract

Zebrafish Egg Infection Model for Studying Candida albicans Adhesion Factors

Cited by 21 publications

References 39 publications

Antifungal Therapy: New Advances in the Understanding and Treatment of Mycosis

Antifungal Therapy: New Advances in the Understanding and Treatment of Mycosis

Dissecting Candida albicans Infection from the Perspective of C. albicans Virulence and Omics Approaches on Host–Pathogen Interaction: A Review

Phenotypic Plasticity Regulates Candida albicans Interactions and Virulence in the Vertebrate Host

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About