Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 17, 2026
05:37
Label-Free Quantitative Proteomics Workflow for Discovery-Driven Host-Pathogen Interactions
Published on: October 20, 2020
7.4K
Insights from Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomics on Cryptococcus neoformans.
Jovany Jordan Betancourt1, Kirsten Nielsen1,2
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
Journal of Fungi (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 23, 2025
Summary
Proteomics reveals insights into Cryptococcus neoformans virulence and host responses, aiding the development of new diagnostics and treatments for cryptococcal meningitis (CM). This research addresses critical needs for effective antifungal strategies against this opportunistic pathogen.
Area of Science:
- * Medical Mycology
- * Infectious Diseases
- * Proteomics
Background:
- * Cryptococcus neoformans is a critical opportunistic fungal pathogen causing cryptococcosis and cryptococcal meningitis (CM).
- * CM is a leading cause of mortality in AIDS patients, with high mortality rates (13-78%) and growing antifungal resistance.
- * Current treatments are limited by long-term high-dose antifungals and C. neoformans' complex virulence factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- * To explore host-Cryptococcus proteomes using mass spectrometry-based proteomics.
- * To identify clinically relevant proteins, pathways, and antigens for improved diagnostics and therapeutics.
- * To understand host defense mechanisms against C. neoformans.
Main Methods:
- * Mass spectrometry-based proteomics was employed to analyze host-pathogen interactions.
- * Proteomic data was used to investigate C. neoformans virulence factors, metabolism, and host responses.
Main Results:
- * Proteomics provided insights into C. neoformans biology and cryptococcal disease mechanisms.
- * Identified target proteins and pathways involved in fungal virulence and host defense.
Conclusions:
- * Proteomics is invaluable for understanding complex host-pathogen interactions in cryptococcosis.
- * Further proteomic studies can facilitate the development of novel clinical tools for detecting, diagnosing, and treating C. neoformans infections.
- * This approach aids in overcoming challenges posed by antifungal resistance and high CM mortality.
Related Concept Videos
01:19MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry
6.5K
Mass spectrometry is a powerful characterization technique that can identify and separate a wide variety of compounds ranging from chemical to biological entities, based on their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z). The instruments that allow this detection, known as mass spectrometers, have three components: an ion source, a mass analyzer, and a detector. These spectrometers differ based on the nature of their ion source and analyzers.Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) is a commonly...
6.5K
01:33Proteomics
9.3K
A proteome is the entire set of proteins that a cell type produces. We can study proteomes using the knowledge of genomes because genes code for mRNAs, and the mRNAs encode proteins. Although mRNA analysis is a step in the right direction, not all mRNAs are translated into proteins.
Proteomics is the study of proteomes' function. It involves the large-scale systematic study of the proteome to denote the protein complement expressed by a genome. Scientist Mark Wilkins coined the term...
Proteomics is the study of proteomes' function. It involves the large-scale systematic study of the proteome to denote the protein complement expressed by a genome. Scientist Mark Wilkins coined the term...
9.3K