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Fungal morphogenetic changes inside the mammalian host

Nuria Trevijano-Contador1, Cristina Rueda1, Oscar Zaragoza1

  • 1Mycology Reference Laboratory, National Centre for Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Carretera Majadahonda-Pozuelo Km2, Majadahonda 28220, Madrid, Spain.

Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology
|April 23, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Pathogenic fungi change shape to cause disease. This review covers how morphological changes in fungi like Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans aid infection processes.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Mycology
  • Pathogen Biology
  • Cellular Morphology

Background:

  • Pathogenic fungi exhibit morphological plasticity, switching between yeast and filamentous forms.
  • These morphological transitions are crucial for fungal pathogenesis, impacting infection progression.
  • Key processes like adhesion, invasion, immune evasion, and phagocytosis avoidance are influenced by fungal morphology.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the role of fungal morphological transitions in disease development.
  • To highlight the significance of these changes in pathogenic fungi.
  • To examine specific examples in Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on fungal morphology and pathogenesis.
  • Analysis of documented morphological changes in key fungal species.
  • Comparative examination of different fungal morphological transition strategies.

Main Results:

  • Morphological switching is a common trait in pathogenic fungi, enabling adaptation during infection.
  • Candida albicans transitions between yeast (blastoconidia) and filamentous (hyphae/pseudohyphae) forms.
  • Cryptococcus neoformans exhibits size changes (titan cells) without altering cell shape.

Conclusions:

  • Fungal morphological transitions are critical virulence factors.
  • Understanding these changes provides insights into fungal disease mechanisms.
  • Targeting morphological plasticity may offer novel therapeutic strategies against fungal infections.
Keywords:
BlastoconidiaFilamentHyphaeImmune evasionPhagocytosisTitan cell

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