Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 11, 2026

Cycloheximide Chase Analysis of Protein Degradation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Published on: April 18, 2016
Disruption of protein synthesis as antifungal mode of action by chitosan
Imelda Galván Márquez1, Jones Akuaku, Isabel Cruz
1Department of Biology, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B5, Canada.
Abstract:
The antimicrobial activity of chitosan has been acknowledged for more than 30 years and yet its mode-of-action remains ambiguous. We analyzed chemical-genetic interactions of low-molecular weight chitosan using a collection of ≈ 4600 S. cerevisiae deletion mutants and found that 31% of the 107 mutants most sensitive to chitosan had deletions of genes related primarily to functions involving protein synthesis. Disruption of protein synthesis by chitosan was substantiated by an in vivo β-galactosidase expression assay suggesting that this is a primary mode of antifungal action. Analysis of the yeast gene deletion array and secondary assays also indicate that chitosan has a minor membrane disruption effect - a leading model of chitosan antimicrobial activity.
Related Concept Videos
Antifungal Agents
Inhibitors of Bacterial Protein Synthesis
Inhibitors of Viral Protein Synthesis
Drugs that Destabilize Microtubules
Gene Regulation in Microbial Communities: Quorum Sensing
Indirect-Acting Cholinergic Agonists: Mechanism of Action
Reversible inhibitors like edrophonium bind to a specific part of the enzyme called the anionic catalytic site. They form noncovalent bonds, which means they are not strongly attached to the enzyme. This creates a temporary and less stable enzyme–inhibitor complex, leading to...

