Interactions of Candida albicans with host epithelial surfaces
نویسندگان
چکیده
Candida albicans is an opportunistic, fungal pathogen of humans that frequently causes superficial infections of oral and vaginal mucosal surfaces of debilitated and susceptible individuals. The organism is however, commonly encountered as a commensal in healthy individuals where it is a component of the normal microflora. The key determinant in the type of relationship that Candida has with its host is how it interacts with the epithelial surface it colonises. A delicate balance clearly exists between the potentially damaging effects of Candida virulence factors and the nature of the immune response elicited by the host. Frequently, it is changes in host factors that lead to Candida seemingly changing from a commensal to pathogenic existence. However, given the often reported heterogeneity in morphological and biochemical factors that exist between Candida species and indeed strains of C. albicans, it may also be the fact that colonising strains differ in the way they exploit resources to allow persistence at mucosal surfaces and as a consequence this too may affect the way Candida interacts with epithelial cells. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of some of the possible interactions that may occur between C. albicans and host epithelial surfaces that may in turn dictate whether Candida removal, its commensal persistence or infection follows.
منابع مشابه
Mucosal Immunity and Candida albicans Infection
Interactions between mucosal surfaces and microbial microbiota are key to host defense, health, and disease. These surfaces are exposed to high numbers of microbes and must be capable of distinguishing between those that are beneficial or avirulent and those that will invade and cause disease. Our understanding of the mechanisms involved in these discriminatory processes has recently begun to e...
متن کاملCandida albicans-epithelial interactions and pathogenicity mechanisms: scratching the surface
Until recently, epithelial cells have been a largely ignored component of host responses to microbes. However, this has been largely overturned over the last decade as an ever increasing number of studies have highlighted the key role that these cells play in many of our interactions with our microbiota and pathogens. Interactions of these cells with Candida albicans have been shown to be criti...
متن کاملRelation of ALS 1 and ALS3 genes and fluconazole resistance in Candida albicans isolated from vaginal candidacies
Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungi that is able to thrive in many host niches, including the skin, mucosal, surfaces, the blood stream and internal organs. Agglutinin-like sequence (ALS) genes which could play a role in forming biofilms, adherence to host surfaces as a virulence factor and antifungal drug resistant. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the presence ALS1 and ...
متن کاملFrom Attachment to Damage: Defined Genes of Candida albicans Mediate Adhesion, Invasion and Damage during Interaction with Oral Epithelial Cells
Candida albicans frequently causes superficial infections by invading and damaging epithelial cells, but may also cause systemic infections by penetrating through epithelial barriers. C. albicans is an unusual pathogen because it can invade epithelial cells via two distinct mechanisms: induced endocytosis, analogous to facultative intracellular enteropathogenic bacteria, and active penetration,...
متن کاملTranscriptional responses of candida albicans to epithelial and endothelial cells.
Candida albicans interacts with oral epithelial cells during oropharyngeal candidiasis and with vascular endothelial cells when it disseminates hematogenously. We set out to identify C. albicans genes that govern interactions with these host cells in vitro. The transcriptional response of C. albicans to the FaDu oral epithelial cell line and primary endothelial cells was determined by microarra...
متن کامل