Immune cells fold and damage fungal hyphae.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 33876755.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1073/pnas.2020484118 and PMC identifier 8053999.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Innate immunity provides essential protection against life-threatening fungal infections. However, the outcomes of individual skirmishes between immune cells and fungal pathogens are not a foregone conclusion because some pathogens have evolved mechanisms to evade phagocytic recognition, engulfment, and killing. For example, <i>Candida albicans</i> can escape phagocytosis by activating cellular morphogenesis to form lengthy hyphae that are challenging to engulf. Through live imaging of <i>C. albicans</i>-macrophage interactions, we discovered that macrophages can counteract this by folding fungal hyphae. The folding of fungal hyphae is promoted by Dectin-1, β2-integrin, VASP, actin-myosin polymerization, and cell motility. Folding facilitates the complete engulfment of long hyphae in some cases and it inhibits hyphal growth, presumably tipping the balance toward successful fungal clearance.
Medical subject headings
- Candida albicans
- Hyphae
- Macrophages
- Phagocytosis