New “haploid biofilm model” unravels IRA2 as a novel regulator of Candida albicans biofilm formation

• DOI: 10.1038/srep12433
• Publication Date: 2015-07-23T10:09:53Z
• Authors: Chaminda Jayampat...; Guisheng Zeng; Thuyen Truong; Sarah Sze; Wah Wong; Lakshman Samarana...; Fong Yee Chan; Yan-Ming Wang; Haitao Wang; Jiaxin Gao; Yue Wang
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; haploidy; 570; Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; growth; Haploidy; biofilm; Article; 03 medical and health sciences; Species Specificity; Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein; 616; Candida albicans; IRA2 protein; Cell Proliferation; guanosine triphosphatase activating protein; Multidisciplinary; S cerevisiae; development and aging; species difference; GTPase-Activating Proteins; cell proliferation; classification; 1000 General; Biofilms; physiology; cytology; metabolism

Abstract Clinical isolates of the fungal human pathogen Candida albicans are invariably diploid and heterozygous, impeding genetic study. Recent isolation C. haploids opens opportunities to apply technologies unfeasible in diploids. However, doubts remain on whether haploids, derived from chromosome loss, can represent Here, we use investigate biofilm, a key virulence attribute. We conducted first comprehensive characterization biofilm formation comparison with demonstrate that form biofilms essentially same characteristics as Screening haploid mutant library has uncovered novel GTPase-related genes regulators, including IRA2 encodes an activator Ras GTPase. IRA2- deletion mutants develop poorly constructed both . Our results valid model for research powerful tool uncovering regulators.