Title REVIEW] Interaction of Candida albicans with host cells: virulence factors, host defense, escape strategies, and the microbiota
Author Sarah Höfs1, Selene Mogavero1, and Bernhard Hube1,2,3*
Address 1Department of Microbial Pathogenicity Mechanisms, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans-Knoell-Institute, Jena, Germany, 2Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany, 3Center for Sepsis Control and Care, University Hospital, Jena, Germany
Bibliography Journal of Microbiology, 54(3),149-169, 2016,
DOI 10.1007/s12275-016-5514-0
Key Words host response, fungal infection, adhesion, morphogenesis, biofilm, fungal-bacterial interactions
Abstract The interaction between Candida albicans and its host cells is characterized by a complex interplay between the expression of fungal virulence factors, which results in adherence, invasion and cell damage, and the host immune system, which responds by secreting proinflammatory cytokines, activating antimicrobial activities and killing the fungal pathogen. In this review we describe this interplay by taking a closer look at how C. albicans pathogenicity is induced and executed, how the host responds in order to prevent and clear an infection, and which mechanisms C. albicans has evolved to bypass these immune responses to avoid clearance. Furthermore, we review studies that show how the presence of other microorganisms affects this interplay.