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A genome sequence survey shows that the pathogenic yeast Candida parapsilosis has a defective MTLa1 allele at its

Mary E Logue1, Simon Wong, Kenneth H Wolfe

  • 1Department of Biochemistry, Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.

Eukaryotic Cell
|June 11, 2005
PubMed

Insights

The Candida parapsilosis mating pathway appears defective or significantly different from Candida albicans. Analysis revealed genetic mutations in the MTLa1 gene, suggesting impaired mating capabilities in most isolates.

Area of Science:

  • Mycology
  • Medical Microbiology
  • Genomics

Background:

  • Candida parapsilosis causes approximately 15% of Candida infections, posing risks to neonates and intensive care patients.
  • The closely related species Candida albicans possesses a functional mating pathway, a process crucial for genetic exchange.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mating pathway in Candida parapsilosis by analyzing its genome.
  • To compare the mating pathway genes and loci between C. parapsilosis and C. albicans.

Main Methods:

  • Genome sequencing of the C. parapsilosis type strain.
  • Identification and analysis of genes predicted to be involved in mating.
  • Comparative analysis of mating type loci (MTLa and MTLalpha) with C. albicans.

Main Results:

  • Identified approximately 3,900 genes in C. parapsilosis, with 59% amino acid identity to C. albicans.
  • Discovered a locus homologous to the MTLa mating type locus, but with internal stop codons in MTLa1 and unspliced introns.
  • Found that all tested C. parapsilosis isolates possess only the MTLa idiomorph, unlike C. albicans and C. dubliniensis.

Conclusions:

  • The C. parapsilosis mating pathway is likely defective due to mutations in the MTLa1 gene.
  • The genetic organization of mating type loci in C. parapsilosis differs significantly from C. albicans.
  • These findings suggest that C. parapsilosis may have limited or no functional sexual reproduction via the known pathway.

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