Isolation and characterization of cell surface mutants of Candida albicans

Mutant strains of Candida albicans were obtained by selecting for cells that escaped agglutination by a polyclonal antiserum raised against standard C. albicans serotype A isolate B311. Mutants were obtained from strains B311 and B792 and from four strains isolated from patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. All 15 tested mutants retained characteristic sugar assimilation patterns. All but one of the mutants retained the ability to form germ tubes and chlamydospores. Two mutants from an acquired immunodeficiency syndrome-derived isolate were deficient in binding complement ligands iC3b and C3d, whereas another mutant was deficient in binding ligand iC3b but not C3d. The hyphae of these three mutants lacked antigens when examined by Western immunoblotting with monoclonal antibody Ca-A, which detects several glycoproteins, including C3d-binding proteins. One of the complement-binding-deficient mutants was tested for its ability to colonize the gastrointestinal tract of rabbits but did not differ from the wild-type parent in site or degree of colonization. The proton magnetic resonance spectra of bulk mannan carbohydrate extracted from tested mutants showed the loss of a signal characteristic of the mannosyl alpha-PO4 linkage; each mutant also had a distinct pattern of other changes.