A percepção e aquisição de nutrientes essenciais do meio ambiente estão associadas com o desenvolvimento do fungo saprófita A. fumigatus em um ambiente hostil. O fosfato inorgânico é um dos nutrientes essenciais para o desenvolvimento deste fungo. Os sistemas para aquisição de fosfato em células eucarióticas têm sido caracterizados como sistema de alta afinidade, o qual é ativado em resposta a ausência externa de fosfato e sistema de baixa afinidade, o qual assegura um suprimento de fosfato em concentrações normais ou altas de fosfato extracelular. Como um passo inicial para o entendimento da via PHO em A. fumigatus, caracterizou-se o homólogo PHO80, PHO84 e PHO85 aqui denominados phoBPHO80, phoDPHO84 e phoAPHO85, respectivamente. Resultados mostraram que o mutante phoBPHO80 apresenta um defeito no crescimento polarizado e que existe uma interação entre o metabolismo de PhoBPHO80, da calcineurina e do cálcio. As hibridações de microarray realizadas com RNA obtido das cepas mutante phoBPHO80 e selvagem mostraram que os genes Afu4g03610 (phoDPHO84), Afu7g06350 (phoEPHO89), Afu4g06020 (phoCPHO81) e Afu2g09040 (transportador vacuolar Vtc4) estão mais expressos no background do mutante phoBPHO80 ou em concentração de 0.1 mmol/L de fosfato. Nossos resultados indicam que a mutação phoBPHO80 pode afetar o acúmulo de polifosfato em vacúolos em alta ou baixa concentração de fosfato extracelular. Não obteve-se êxito na deleção da quinase phoAPHO85 desta forma pode-se levar em consideração que o gene phoAPHO85 parece ser essencial em A. fumigatus. Surpreendentemente, a cepa com a deleção de phoDPHO84 não apresentou nenhum fenótipo diferente da sua cepa selvagem. Além do mais, as cepas mutantes phoBPHO80 e phoDPHO84 não apresentaram redução na virulência em um modelo murino de aspergilose invasiva. Nossos resultados sugerem também, que a deleção da proteína quinase A está contribuindo para um decréscimo na expressão de genes PHO em A. fumigatus. / Environmental sensing and retrieval of nutrients from the environment are associated with growth of A. fumigatus in inhospitable environments. Phosphate is an ion that is essential for fungal growth. The systems for inorganic phosphate (Pi) acquisition in eukaryotic cells (PHO) have been characterized as a low-affinity (that assures a supply of Pi at normal or high external Pi concentrations) and a high-affinity (activated in response to Pi starvation). Here, as an initial step to understand the PHO pathway in Aspergillus fumigatus, we characterized the PHO80, PHO84 and PHO85 homologues, here denominaded phoBPHO80, phoDPHO84 and phoAPHO85, respectively. We show that the phoBPHO80 mutant has a polar growth defect (i.e., a delayed germ tube emergence) and, by phenotypic and phosphate uptake analyses, establish a link between PhoBPHO80, calcineurin and calcium metabolism. Microarray hybridizations carried out with RNA obtained from wild-type and phoBPHO80 mutant cells identify Afu4g03610 (phoDPHO84), Afu7g06350 (phoEPHO89), Afu4g06020 (phoCPHO81), and Afu2g09040 (vacuolar transporter Vtc4) as more expressed both in the phoBPHO80 mutant background and under phosphate-limiting conditions of 0.1 mM Pi. Epi-fluorescence microscopy revealed accumulation of poly-phosphate in phoBPHO80 vacuoles, which was independent of extracellular phosphate concentration. We also tried to isolate the phoAPHO85 deletion strain without succes after several times what raises the interesting possibility that the phoAPHO85 null mutant might be essential in Aspergillus fumigatus. Surprisingly, phoDPHO84 deletion mutant is indistinguishable phenotypically from the corresponding wild-type strain. mRNA analyses suggest that protein kinase A absence supports the expression of PHO genes in A. fumigatus. Furthermore, phoBPHO80 and phoDPHO84 mutant are fully virulent in a murine low dose model for invasive aspergillosis.

Aspergillus fumigatus é um fungo patogênico oportunista capaz de infectar pacientes imunocomprometidos causando eventualmente infecções disseminadas difíceis de serem controladas e com alta taxa de mortalidade dos indivíduos infectados.. Para um melhor entendimento de como esse fungo age no hospedeiro é importante saber como as vias de sinalização que regulam esses fatores de virulência são orquestradas. Proteínas fosfatases são centrais em uma grande variedade de vias de transdução de sinal. Neste trabalho, nós caracterizamos a proteína fosfatase 2A SitA, a proteína homóloga de Sit4 em Saccharomyces serevisiae. O gene sitA não é essencial e por isso fomos capazes de construir um mutante nulo em A. fumigatus. A cepa ?sitA apresenta aumento na fosforilação da MpkA, é mais sensível à agentes que causam dano na parede celular, tem um aumento na quantidade de ?-1,3 glicano e quitina, e também tem problemas na adesão e formação de biofilme. O mutante ?sitA é mais sensível a vários metais e íons, como MnCl2, CaCl2, LiCl, entretanto é mais resistente à ZnSO4. O mutante ?sitA é avirulento em modelo de aspergilose pulmonar invasiva em camundongos. Esses resultados revelam que a fosfatase SitA está envolvida na via de integridade da parede celular de A. fumigatus possivelmente modulando a atividade de PkcA/MpkA / Aspergillus fumigatus is an opportunistic pathogenic fungus able to infect immunocompromised patients causing eventually disseminated infections that are difficult to be controlled, and lead to high mortality rates. It is important to understand how are orchestrated the signalling pathways that regulate these factors involved in virulence. Protein phosphatases are central to numerous signal transduction pathways. Here we characterize A. fumigatus protein phosphatase 2A SitA, the S. cerevisiae Sit4p homologue. The sitA gene is not an essential gene and we were able to construct an A. fumigatus null mutant. The ?sitA strain had increased MpkA phosphorylation, was more sensitive to cell wall damaging agents, had increased ??1,3?glican and chitin, and was impaired in biofilm formation. The ?sitA strain is more sensitive to several metals and ions such as MnCl2, CaCl2, and LiCl, however, it is more resistant to ZnSO4. The ?sitA strain was avirulent in a murine model of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. These results stress the importance of A. fumigatus SitA as a possible modulator of PkcA/MpkA activity and its involvement in the cell wall integrity pathway

O Aspergillus fumigatus é um fungo filamentoso e saprofítico, encontrado em todas as regiões do mundo, desempenhando um importante papel na reciclagem de carbono e nitrogênio do solo. A principal forma de infecção ocorre através da inalação dos conídios com predominância de infecções no trato respiratório, principalmente em pacientes imunocomprometidos. A mitocôndria de A. fumigatus foi caracterizada em nosso laboratório, que revelou a presença de uma respiração resistente a cianeto mediada pela oxidase alternativa. A clonagem e sequenciamento deste gene foram realizadas através de screening de uma biblioteca de DNA genômico. O alinhamento das sequências genômica e de cDNA mostrou a presença de dois introns, que após splicing codifica uma proteína contendo 352 aminoácidos, possuindo uma massa molecular estimada de 40,84 kDa e um pI teórico de 9,51. Além disso, foram identificados domínios altamente conservados (LET, NERMHL, LEEA e RADEH) que interagem com átomos de ferro e estão contidos em -hélices propostas como responsáveis pela organização estrutural da enzima. A fim de caracterizar bioquimicamente esta proteína, a sequência de cDNA do gene foi clonada em plasmídeo pYES2 e expressa em S. cerevisiae INVSc1 como um modelo eucarioto. Após expressão, a proteína encontrou-se de forma ativa, conferindo à levedura uma respiração resistente a cianeto. Esta característica herdada provocou uma discreta diminuição na taxa de crescimento em meio não-fermentativo e uma capacidade de sobrevivência na presença de KCN. Acredita-se que a atividade das AOXs esteja diretamente relacionada com a presença de diferentes espécies reativas de oxigênio (ERO). Neste contexto, a avaliação do efeito de diferentes agentes pró-oxidantes provocou um aumento na atividade e na expressão da enzima. Paralelamente, a caracterização funcional do gene foi realizada através da técnica de interferência por RNA, utilizando o vetor de expressão pALB1. Em meio contendo maltose, as cepas pALB1/aoxAf apresentaram coloração branca devido ao silenciamento do gene alb1. Os níveis de mRNA do gene aoxAf foram determinados por Real time RT-PCR, mostrando o eficiente silenciamento do gene alvo com a construção utilizada. Devido à relação já descrita entre ERO e a atividade das AOXs, avaliou-se a produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio nas cepas silenciadas utilizando-se a sonda CM-H2DCFDA, observando maior produção na cepa pALB1/aoxAf. Além disso, a viabilidade destas cepas foi determinada por citometria de fluxo após a exposição com agentes pró-oxidantes, a qual indicou maior letalidade na cepa pALB1/aoxAf, quando comparada com CEA e pALB1. Da mesma forma, após a incubação dos conídios das cepas silenciadas com macrófagos de camundongos foi verificada uma maior atividade microbicida dos macrófagos na cepa duplamente silenciada pALB1/aoxAf, quando comparada com as outras cepas. Com estes resultados podemos concluir que a oxidase alternativa apresenta uma importante atividade antioxidante, além de contribuir nos mecanismos de defesa durante o processo de infecção de A. fumigatus. / The saprophytic species Aspergillus fumigatus is a deuteromycete fungus found worldwide, which has an essential role in recycling carbon and nitrogen. Following inhalation of conidia by the immunocompetent host, the innate cellular immune system is responsible for killing the conidia, exposing them to reactive oxygen. However, A. fumigatus is capable of surviving and replicating within the phagolysosomal compartment of immunocompromised macrophages. It was previously demonstrated that A. fumigatus mitochondria possess an alternative oxidase (aoxAf) wich is a cyanide-resistant protein. A partial genomic DNA library was screened to cloning an aoxAf gene. The alignment between the cDNA and genomic DNA sequences revealed the existence of two introns which after splicing encodes a 352 amino acid sequence with a calculated molecular mass of 40 kDa and a theoretical pI of 9.51. The deduced amino acid sequence revealed four regions completely conserved among the AOXs sequences (LET, NERMHL, LEEA and RADE-H), where six conserved amino acids residues are proposed to be a metal ligand site. To characterize the AOX protein, a cDNA of aoxAf gene was cloned into pYES2 plasmid and transformed in S. cerevisiae INVSc1. After the incubation of the cells in a nonfermentable medium in the presence of KCN, S. cerevisiae expressing AOX was able to grow, while it was lethal for the control yeast. These results suggest that the recombinant AOXAf is properly targeted to the S. cerevisiae mitochondria where it has functional activity. Studies with different species demonstrated that AOX is induced by a variety of treatments usually labeled as stresses. To verify the function of AOX in A. fumigatus under oxidative stress conditions, conidia were treated with different donors of ROS. These treatments caused an increase in aoxAf activity and transcription levels. To identify genetically attributes of virulence and oxidative defense in A. fumigatus, we construct a RNA interference plasmid. Two inverted repeated sequences of conserved region of an interest gene were amplified and cloned in pALB1 plasmid. In maltose medium pALB1 and pALB1/aoxAf transformants demonstrated white colonies, attributable to the reduction of alb1 gene expression. The aoxAf mRNA levels were analyzed by Real time RT-PCR, showing an efficient alternative oxidase gene silencing in pALB1 plasmid construction. It was previously demonstrated that ROS can stimulate the AOXs activity, so, we used the dye CM-H2DCFDA to measure ROS production in RNAi transformants, showing that the decrease in aoxAf gene expression caused an increase in ROS production. After incubation with ROS donors the viability of these strains was determined by flow cytometry analysis. The pALB1/aoxAf strain showed higher lethality, when compared with CEA and pALB1, suggesting the involvement of AOX in antioxidant defense in A. fumigatus. Besides, ROS produced by alveolar macrophages play an essential role in the killing of A. fumigatus conidia. In the same way, phagocytosis assay revealed that pALB1/aoxAf strain was more lethal than CEA and pALB1. With these results, we concluded that alternative oxidase is an efficient antioxidant system and might contribute with defense mechanism of A. fumigatus.

Aspergillus fumigatus é um fungo filamentoso e saprofítico encontrado em todas as regiões do mundo. A principal forma de infecção ocorre através da inalação de conídios do fungo com predominância de infecções no trato respiratório, principalmente em pacientes imunocomprometidos. Foi caracterizada a função mitocondrial de A. fumigatus e sugeriu-se a presença de vias alternativas, dentre elas, a presença da NADH desidrogenase alternativa. A fim de colaborar com estudos para elucidação do papel desta enzima, foi realizada a clonagem dos genes das NADH desidrogenase alternativa interna e externa de A. fumigatus. A análise da seqüência de aminoácidos revelou um perfil de hidropaticidade com a presença de quatro regiões hidrofóbicas, semelhante às outras seqüências já descritas. Além disso, foram identificados dois motivos (GXGXXG) altamente conservados para ligações a nucleotídeos, dentro de um domínio os quais estão relacionados com a estrutura e atividade da enzima. A seqüência de cDNA do gene ndhiAf foi clonada em plasmídeo pYES2 e expressa em S. cerevisiae cepa CEN.PK873-2B; a expressão da NDHIAf foi verificada por técnica de Western-blot. A proteína foi expressa de forma ativa, conferindo à levedura uma respiração e a formação de um potencial de membrana resultantes da oxidação de substratos clássicos do complexo I, sugerindo sua localização na membrana mitocondrial interna. Além disso, as cepas expressando essa proteína foram capazes de crescer em meio contendo apenas lactato como fonte de carbono, uma característica atribuída à presença da NADH desidrogenase alternativa interna (NDHi). Considerando que a atividade das NDHIAf e NDHEAf estão sob controle metabólico, nos avaliamos o efeito de diferentes concentrações de glucose como única fonte de carbono no meio de cultura. Durante a germinação conidial, não foi observada expressão da NDHIAf e NDHEAf na presença de baixas concentrações de glucose. Entretanto, durante a fase de hifas foi observado um aumento na expressão de NDHIAf e NDHEAf. Por outro lado, em alta concentrações de glucose, durante a germinação conidial, foi observado expressão da NDHIAf mas nenhuma expressão da NDHEAf. Na fase de hifas observou-se um aumento da expressão da NDHIAf e uma diminuição da NDHEAf. / Aspergillus fumigatus is a filamentous and saprophytic fungus found in all regions of the world. The main form of infection occurs through inhalation of fungi conidial, with predominance of infections in the respiratory treat, mainly in immunocompromised host. It was characterized the mitochondrial function of A. fumigatus and suggested the presence of alternative pathways, including the alternative NADH dehydrogenase. In order to elucidate its role, genes of the external and internal enzymes were cloned. Analysis of the amino acid sequence and hydropathy plot revealed a profile with four hydrophobic regions, similar to other already described sequences. Moreover, two highly conserved motifs (GXGXXG) for the nucleotides interaction, related with the structure and activity of the enzyme, were identified inside the a domain. The sequence of DNA of the ndhiAf gene was cloned in an expression plasmid pYES2 and expressed in CEN.PK873-2B S. cerevisiae strain; the expression was confirmed by Western-blot analysis. The protein was expressed in an active form, providing to the yeast an oxygen consumption and a potential membrane formation due to oxidation of the complex I substract, suggesting its localization in the inner mitochondrial membrane. Moreover, strains expressing this protein were capable of growing in medium with only lactate as a carbon source, a characteristic associated with the presence of internal alternative NADH dehydrogenase (NDHI). Considering that NDHI and NDHE activities are under metabolic control, we evaluated the effect of different concentrations of glucose as the only carbon source in the medium of culture. During conidia germination, it was not observed neither an expression of NDHI nor NDHE in the presence of low concentrations of glucose. However, in hyphae phase was observed an increase an expression of NDHI and NDHE. On the other hand, in high concentration of glucose, during conidia germination was observed an expression of NDHI and not expression of NDHE. In hyphae phase was observed a decrease an expression of NDHI and an increase of NDHE.

L'objectif de cette thèse a été de contribuer à la compréhension des stratégies d'infection du pathogène opportuniste Aspergillus fumigatus. Ce pathogène est une cause émergente de morbidité et de mortalité chez les patients dont l'immunité est compromise et dans les milieux hospitaliers. Une infection avec Aspergillus est en général appelée une Aspergillose et ellepeut se développer dans un certain nombre d'organes, le plus fréquemment dansl'appareil respiratoire (poumons et sinus). Outre les infections (Aspergillosis invasive), la colonisation par ce champignon peut causer des réactions allergiques (Aspergilloses broncho pulmonaire allergique) et de l'asthme. Le nombre de patients immunodéprimés augmente régulièrement à cause des avancées des traitements du SIDA, du cancer, de la mucoviscidose ainsi que par le nombre grandissant de transplantation d'organes. De nouveaux médicaments antifongiques et des médicaments préventifs sont nécessaires pour venir en soutienaux soins médicaux des patients. Bien que plusieurs fongicides existent déjà sur le marché, l'Aspergillosisinvasive reste souvent fatale. Ceci est lié d'une part à la difficulté d'établir le diagnostic, et d'autre part au fait que des résistances émergent rapidement. La motivation de cette thèse est de comprendre les mécanismes impliqués dans le premier contact entre les conidies et le tissu de l'hôte. Ces mécanismes d'adhésion initiaux sont souvent réalisés par des liaisons entre les lectines et les carbohydrates. Le tissu épithélial et la surface muqueuse du système respiratoire sont couverts de structures possédants des carbohydratestels que les glycoprotéines, les glycolipides et les glycosaminoglycanes. L'identification des lectines d'A. fumigatus et leurs caractérisations devraient dorénavant contribuer à la compréhension de la glycostratégie de ce pathogène opportuniste ainsi que des mécanismes impliqués dans l'adhésion et l'infection. L'analyse détaillée de la structure des lectines permettra d'établir le rôle de cesprotéinesdans la virulence et de guider la conception de glycomimétiques, afin d'inhiber le phénomène d'adhésion. Cettenouvelle approche consistant à bloquer l'adhésion de l'agent pathogène plutôt que sa prolifération, vise à diminuer les résistances par une réduction de la pression évolutive. Deuxstratégies différentes ont été utilisées pouridentifier de nouvelleslectines. Tout d'abord une purification des lectinesà partir d'extraits fongiques brutsa été tentée et d'autre part un criblage pour trouver des séquences similaires avec les protéines codées par A. fumigatusa été réalisé parmi une banque de lectines fongiques connues. / The aim of this thesis was to contribute to the understanding of infection strategies of the opportunistic pathogen Aspergillusfumigatus. This pathogenic mould is an emerging cause of morbidity and mortality in immuno-compromised patients and hospital environments. An infection with Aspergillus is generally referred to as Aspergillosis; it can develop in a variety of organs but the most common sites are the respiratory apparatus i.e. lungs and sinuses. Besides infections (invasive aspergillosis), colonization with the fungus can cause allergic reactions (allergic broncho pulmonary aspergillosis) and asthma. The number of immuno-suppressed patients is steadily increasing due to advancement in the HIV, cancer and cystic fibrosis medical care, as well as an increasing number of organ transplantations. Needless to say that new antifungal drugs and preventive medication is desperately needed to support medical care for those patients. Even though several fungicides already exist on the market, invasive aspergillosis remains to be often fatal. On one hand, this is due to difficulties in diagnosis and on the other hand, resistances are emerging rapidly. The motivation behind this thesis is to understand the underlying mechanisms that are involved in the first contact between conidial spores and host tissues. Initial adhesion steps often involve carbohydrate binding proteins, called lectins. They recognize glycoconjugates such as glycoproteins, glycolipids and glycosaminoglycans which cover the epithelial tissue and mucosal surface of the respiratory tract.. Identification and characterization of the lectins from A. fumigatus will therefore contribute to the understanding of the glycostrategy of this opportunistic pathogen and of the mechanisms involved in adhesion and infection. Detailed structural analysis of the carbohydrate-protein interactions will allow ascertaining the lectins role in virulence and guide the design of glycomimetics, as adhesion inhibitors. With this novel approach of targeting the pathogen adhesion rather than its proliferation, resistances are believed to be less frequent due to the lack of evolutionary pressure. In this work, two different strategies were employed to obtain novel lectins. Firstly, lectins were purified from crude fungal extracts and secondly the A. fumigatus genome was screened for encoded proteins showing sequence similarity with known fungal lectins. While lectin purification from the crude extracts was inconclusive due to low lectin activity in the starting material, genome screening showed that several putative lectins were present. One of these lectins, named AFL6, belonged to the cyanovirin-N homolog (CVNH) family and it was recombinantly expressed and purified. Glycan array and micro calorimetry techniques were carried out to investigate its carbohydrate binding specificityand the three dimensional structure was determined using X-ray crystallography. The structure showed an overall similarity with other CVNHs with slight differences in the presumed carbohydrate binding sites. Unlike other family members, it shows a low affinity for mannosides and an apparent affinity for lactosamine containing glycan structures.

A percepção e aquisição de nutrientes essenciais do meio ambiente estão associadas com o desenvolvimento do fungo saprófita A. fumigatus em um ambiente hostil. O fosfato inorgânico é um dos nutrientes essenciais para o desenvolvimento deste fungo. Os sistemas para aquisição de fosfato em células eucarióticas têm sido caracterizados como sistema de alta afinidade, o qual é ativado em resposta a ausência externa de fosfato e sistema de baixa afinidade, o qual assegura um suprimento de fosfato em concentrações normais ou altas de fosfato extracelular. Como um passo inicial para o entendimento da via PHO em A. fumigatus, caracterizou-se o homólogo PHO80, PHO84 e PHO85 aqui denominados phoBPHO80, phoDPHO84 e phoAPHO85, respectivamente. Resultados mostraram que o mutante phoBPHO80 apresenta um defeito no crescimento polarizado e que existe uma interação entre o metabolismo de PhoBPHO80, da calcineurina e do cálcio. As hibridações de microarray realizadas com RNA obtido das cepas mutante phoBPHO80 e selvagem mostraram que os genes Afu4g03610 (phoDPHO84), Afu7g06350 (phoEPHO89), Afu4g06020 (phoCPHO81) e Afu2g09040 (transportador vacuolar Vtc4) estão mais expressos no background do mutante phoBPHO80 ou em concentração de 0.1 mmol/L de fosfato. Nossos resultados indicam que a mutação phoBPHO80 pode afetar o acúmulo de polifosfato em vacúolos em alta ou baixa concentração de fosfato extracelular. Não obteve-se êxito na deleção da quinase phoAPHO85 desta forma pode-se levar em consideração que o gene phoAPHO85 parece ser essencial em A. fumigatus. Surpreendentemente, a cepa com a deleção de phoDPHO84 não apresentou nenhum fenótipo diferente da sua cepa selvagem. Além do mais, as cepas mutantes phoBPHO80 e phoDPHO84 não apresentaram redução na virulência em um modelo murino de aspergilose invasiva. Nossos resultados sugerem também, que a deleção da proteína quinase A está contribuindo para um decréscimo na expressão de genes PHO em A. fumigatus. / Environmental sensing and retrieval of nutrients from the environment are associated with growth of A. fumigatus in inhospitable environments. Phosphate is an ion that is essential for fungal growth. The systems for inorganic phosphate (Pi) acquisition in eukaryotic cells (PHO) have been characterized as a low-affinity (that assures a supply of Pi at normal or high external Pi concentrations) and a high-affinity (activated in response to Pi starvation). Here, as an initial step to understand the PHO pathway in Aspergillus fumigatus, we characterized the PHO80, PHO84 and PHO85 homologues, here denominaded phoBPHO80, phoDPHO84 and phoAPHO85, respectively. We show that the phoBPHO80 mutant has a polar growth defect (i.e., a delayed germ tube emergence) and, by phenotypic and phosphate uptake analyses, establish a link between PhoBPHO80, calcineurin and calcium metabolism. Microarray hybridizations carried out with RNA obtained from wild-type and phoBPHO80 mutant cells identify Afu4g03610 (phoDPHO84), Afu7g06350 (phoEPHO89), Afu4g06020 (phoCPHO81), and Afu2g09040 (vacuolar transporter Vtc4) as more expressed both in the phoBPHO80 mutant background and under phosphate-limiting conditions of 0.1 mM Pi. Epi-fluorescence microscopy revealed accumulation of poly-phosphate in phoBPHO80 vacuoles, which was independent of extracellular phosphate concentration. We also tried to isolate the phoAPHO85 deletion strain without succes after several times what raises the interesting possibility that the phoAPHO85 null mutant might be essential in Aspergillus fumigatus. Surprisingly, phoDPHO84 deletion mutant is indistinguishable phenotypically from the corresponding wild-type strain. mRNA analyses suggest that protein kinase A absence supports the expression of PHO genes in A. fumigatus. Furthermore, phoBPHO80 and phoDPHO84 mutant are fully virulent in a murine low dose model for invasive aspergillosis.

Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis is a life-threatening fungal infection commonly observed in immunocompromised patients and has a mortality rate approaching 100% once the disease is disseminated. Aspergillus fumigatus is the most common pathogen. Early diagnosis improves the prognosis but is very difficult since most signs and symptoms are nonspecific. Antifungal therapy, usually based on sterol biosynthesis inhibitors, is also of limited efficacy. In my attempts to discover a diagnostic sterol marker for aspergillosis, I observed that A. fumigatus incorporates large amounts of cholesterol from serum-containing medium. This observation suggested the hypothesis that exogenous cholesterol from the host can be imported by A. fumigatus and used as a substitute for ergosterol in the cell membrane. This proposed mechanism would reduce the efficacy of antifungal drugs that act as sterol biosynthesis inhibitors. Experiments to test this hypothesis were designed to determine the effects of serum-free and serum-containing medium on growth of A. fumigatus in the presence and absence of azole antifungal agents. The results showed a marked increase in growth in the presence of human serum. Cultures in media containing cholesterol but no serum also showed enhanced growth, a result indicating that a non-cholesterol component of serum is not primarily responsible for the increased growth. However, sterol analysis of A. fumigatus cultured in the absence of inhibitors showed little or no change in ergosterol levels. This result suggested that the imported cholesterol was not being used as membrane sterol. However, in parallel experiments using Itraconazole™, an antifungal agent that attenuates sterol biosynthesis by inhibiting the sterol 14a-demethylase (ERG11), ergosterol levels decreased with increasing doses of inhibitor. Moreover, serum-containing medium partially rescued A. fumigatus from the effects of Itraconazole™, and a similar rescue effect was observed with serum-free media containing cholesterol. From the preceding results, it can be concluded that human serum enhances A. fumigatus growth, that cholesterol import rescues Aspergillus from the effects of antifungal agents, that the potency of some azole antifungals is decreased by cholesterol, and that imported cholesterol may substitute for membrane ergosterol in the presence of sterol biosynthesis inhibitors.

Aspergillus fumigatus é um fungo patogênico oportunista capaz de infectar pacientes imunocomprometidos causando eventualmente infecções disseminadas difíceis de serem controladas e com alta taxa de mortalidade dos indivíduos infectados.. Para um melhor entendimento de como esse fungo age no hospedeiro é importante saber como as vias de sinalização que regulam esses fatores de virulência são orquestradas. Proteínas fosfatases são centrais em uma grande variedade de vias de transdução de sinal. Neste trabalho, nós caracterizamos a proteína fosfatase 2A SitA, a proteína homóloga de Sit4 em Saccharomyces serevisiae. O gene sitA não é essencial e por isso fomos capazes de construir um mutante nulo em A. fumigatus. A cepa ?sitA apresenta aumento na fosforilação da MpkA, é mais sensível à agentes que causam dano na parede celular, tem um aumento na quantidade de ?-1,3 glicano e quitina, e também tem problemas na adesão e formação de biofilme. O mutante ?sitA é mais sensível a vários metais e íons, como MnCl2, CaCl2, LiCl, entretanto é mais resistente à ZnSO4. O mutante ?sitA é avirulento em modelo de aspergilose pulmonar invasiva em camundongos. Esses resultados revelam que a fosfatase SitA está envolvida na via de integridade da parede celular de A. fumigatus possivelmente modulando a atividade de PkcA/MpkA / Aspergillus fumigatus is an opportunistic pathogenic fungus able to infect immunocompromised patients causing eventually disseminated infections that are difficult to be controlled, and lead to high mortality rates. It is important to understand how are orchestrated the signalling pathways that regulate these factors involved in virulence. Protein phosphatases are central to numerous signal transduction pathways. Here we characterize A. fumigatus protein phosphatase 2A SitA, the S. cerevisiae Sit4p homologue. The sitA gene is not an essential gene and we were able to construct an A. fumigatus null mutant. The ?sitA strain had increased MpkA phosphorylation, was more sensitive to cell wall damaging agents, had increased ??1,3?glican and chitin, and was impaired in biofilm formation. The ?sitA strain is more sensitive to several metals and ions such as MnCl2, CaCl2, and LiCl, however, it is more resistant to ZnSO4. The ?sitA strain was avirulent in a murine model of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. These results stress the importance of A. fumigatus SitA as a possible modulator of PkcA/MpkA activity and its involvement in the cell wall integrity pathway

O Aspergillus fumigatus é um fungo filamentoso e saprofítico, encontrado em todas as regiões do mundo, desempenhando um importante papel na reciclagem de carbono e nitrogênio do solo. A principal forma de infecção ocorre através da inalação dos conídios com predominância de infecções no trato respiratório, principalmente em pacientes imunocomprometidos. A mitocôndria de A. fumigatus foi caracterizada em nosso laboratório, que revelou a presença de uma respiração resistente a cianeto mediada pela oxidase alternativa. A clonagem e sequenciamento deste gene foram realizadas através de screening de uma biblioteca de DNA genômico. O alinhamento das sequências genômica e de cDNA mostrou a presença de dois introns, que após splicing codifica uma proteína contendo 352 aminoácidos, possuindo uma massa molecular estimada de 40,84 kDa e um pI teórico de 9,51. Além disso, foram identificados domínios altamente conservados (LET, NERMHL, LEEA e RADEH) que interagem com átomos de ferro e estão contidos em -hélices propostas como responsáveis pela organização estrutural da enzima. A fim de caracterizar bioquimicamente esta proteína, a sequência de cDNA do gene foi clonada em plasmídeo pYES2 e expressa em S. cerevisiae INVSc1 como um modelo eucarioto. Após expressão, a proteína encontrou-se de forma ativa, conferindo à levedura uma respiração resistente a cianeto. Esta característica herdada provocou uma discreta diminuição na taxa de crescimento em meio não-fermentativo e uma capacidade de sobrevivência na presença de KCN. Acredita-se que a atividade das AOXs esteja diretamente relacionada com a presença de diferentes espécies reativas de oxigênio (ERO). Neste contexto, a avaliação do efeito de diferentes agentes pró-oxidantes provocou um aumento na atividade e na expressão da enzima. Paralelamente, a caracterização funcional do gene foi realizada através da técnica de interferência por RNA, utilizando o vetor de expressão pALB1. Em meio contendo maltose, as cepas pALB1/aoxAf apresentaram coloração branca devido ao silenciamento do gene alb1. Os níveis de mRNA do gene aoxAf foram determinados por Real time RT-PCR, mostrando o eficiente silenciamento do gene alvo com a construção utilizada. Devido à relação já descrita entre ERO e a atividade das AOXs, avaliou-se a produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio nas cepas silenciadas utilizando-se a sonda CM-H2DCFDA, observando maior produção na cepa pALB1/aoxAf. Além disso, a viabilidade destas cepas foi determinada por citometria de fluxo após a exposição com agentes pró-oxidantes, a qual indicou maior letalidade na cepa pALB1/aoxAf, quando comparada com CEA e pALB1. Da mesma forma, após a incubação dos conídios das cepas silenciadas com macrófagos de camundongos foi verificada uma maior atividade microbicida dos macrófagos na cepa duplamente silenciada pALB1/aoxAf, quando comparada com as outras cepas. Com estes resultados podemos concluir que a oxidase alternativa apresenta uma importante atividade antioxidante, além de contribuir nos mecanismos de defesa durante o processo de infecção de A. fumigatus. / The saprophytic species Aspergillus fumigatus is a deuteromycete fungus found worldwide, which has an essential role in recycling carbon and nitrogen. Following inhalation of conidia by the immunocompetent host, the innate cellular immune system is responsible for killing the conidia, exposing them to reactive oxygen. However, A. fumigatus is capable of surviving and replicating within the phagolysosomal compartment of immunocompromised macrophages. It was previously demonstrated that A. fumigatus mitochondria possess an alternative oxidase (aoxAf) wich is a cyanide-resistant protein. A partial genomic DNA library was screened to cloning an aoxAf gene. The alignment between the cDNA and genomic DNA sequences revealed the existence of two introns which after splicing encodes a 352 amino acid sequence with a calculated molecular mass of 40 kDa and a theoretical pI of 9.51. The deduced amino acid sequence revealed four regions completely conserved among the AOXs sequences (LET, NERMHL, LEEA and RADE-H), where six conserved amino acids residues are proposed to be a metal ligand site. To characterize the AOX protein, a cDNA of aoxAf gene was cloned into pYES2 plasmid and transformed in S. cerevisiae INVSc1. After the incubation of the cells in a nonfermentable medium in the presence of KCN, S. cerevisiae expressing AOX was able to grow, while it was lethal for the control yeast. These results suggest that the recombinant AOXAf is properly targeted to the S. cerevisiae mitochondria where it has functional activity. Studies with different species demonstrated that AOX is induced by a variety of treatments usually labeled as stresses. To verify the function of AOX in A. fumigatus under oxidative stress conditions, conidia were treated with different donors of ROS. These treatments caused an increase in aoxAf activity and transcription levels. To identify genetically attributes of virulence and oxidative defense in A. fumigatus, we construct a RNA interference plasmid. Two inverted repeated sequences of conserved region of an interest gene were amplified and cloned in pALB1 plasmid. In maltose medium pALB1 and pALB1/aoxAf transformants demonstrated white colonies, attributable to the reduction of alb1 gene expression. The aoxAf mRNA levels were analyzed by Real time RT-PCR, showing an efficient alternative oxidase gene silencing in pALB1 plasmid construction. It was previously demonstrated that ROS can stimulate the AOXs activity, so, we used the dye CM-H2DCFDA to measure ROS production in RNAi transformants, showing that the decrease in aoxAf gene expression caused an increase in ROS production. After incubation with ROS donors the viability of these strains was determined by flow cytometry analysis. The pALB1/aoxAf strain showed higher lethality, when compared with CEA and pALB1, suggesting the involvement of AOX in antioxidant defense in A. fumigatus. Besides, ROS produced by alveolar macrophages play an essential role in the killing of A. fumigatus conidia. In the same way, phagocytosis assay revealed that pALB1/aoxAf strain was more lethal than CEA and pALB1. With these results, we concluded that alternative oxidase is an efficient antioxidant system and might contribute with defense mechanism of A. fumigatus.

Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Lignocellulose, which is composed of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, is the main structural component of plant cell walls. Xylan is the main structural component of hemicellulose. Xylan is a complex heteropolysaccharide and, therefore, requires numerous synergistically acting enzymes for its complete hydrolysis. The focus of this study was on xylanases, which is a main chain cleaving enzyme required for xylan hydrolysis. Xylanases have numerous industrial applications and are commonly used in the biofuels, pulp and paper, food, animal feed and textile industries. Of particular interest is the use of xylanases in the biofuels industry due to the depletion of fossil fuels. A major bottleneck is, however, the low yield and high cost of the enzymatic hydrolysis process. In this study, three different xylanase genes from Aspergillus fumigatus, isolated from a triticale compost heap, were cloned and expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This yeast is an attractive host for the expression of these heterologous proteins, since A. fumigatus is considered a human pathogen and would not be suited for large-scale enzyme production. The recombinant xylanases obtained in this study were functional after expression in the yeast host and yielded high levels of enzyme activity, ranging from 100 to 300 nkat/mg dry cell weight (DCW). Higher enzyme yields will reduce the overall cost of the enzymatic hydrolysis process, making these enzymes attractive to the biofuels industry. The recombinant xylanases obtained in this study were also free of other cellulases. This characteristic makes these enzymes attractive to the pulp and paper industry as cellulose fibres are required to remain intact. Two of the recombinant xylanases, F10 and F11, were relatively stable at a temperature of 50°C with pH optima at pH 6, while the recombinant xylanase G1 only maintained half of its activity at this temperature and displayed pH optimum at pH 5. No synergistic effect was observed between the recombinant xylanases in this study. Future studies could investigate the synergistic interaction between these recombinant xylanases and other accessory enzymes used for the degradation of xylan, such as the esterases. Xylan hydrolysis levels could increase significantly due to a synergistic effect, which would further reduce the overall cost of the lignocellulose enzyme hydrolysis process. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Lignosellulose, saamgestel uit sellulose, hemisellulose en lignien, vorm die hoof strukturele bestanddeel van plantselwande. Xilaan is die hoof strukturele komponent van hemisellulose. Xilaan is ʼn komplekse hetero-polisakkaried en verskeie saamwerkende ensieme vir volledige hidroliese hiervan word benodig. Die fokus van hierdie studie is op xilinases, die hoof kettingbrekende-ensiem vir xilaan hidroliese. Xilinases het verskeie industriële toepassings onder meer in die biobrandstof-, papier en pulp-, voedsel-, dierevoeding- en tekstielindustrieë. Weens die uitputting van fossielbrandstofreserwes word xilinases in die biobrandstof industrie van groot waarde geag. Lae opbrengste en hoë kostes van die ensiemhidroliese proses bly egter ʼn knelpunt. In hierdie studie is drie verskillende xilinase gene vanuit ʼn tritikale komposhoop Aspergillus fumigatus isolaat gekloneer en in Saccharomyces cerevisiae uitgedruk. Gis is ʼn aanloklike gasheer vir die uitdrukking van hierdie heteroloë proteïne aangesien A. fumigatus as menspatogeen nie vir grootskaalse ensiemproduksie geskik is nie. Die rekombinante xilinases verkry in hierdie studie is funksioneel in die gis gasheer uitgedruk en hoë vlakke ensiemaktiwiteit is verkry, van 100 tot 300 nkat/mg droë sel massa (DSM). In die lig van hoër ensiemopbrengste wat die totale koste van die ensiem hidroliese proses verlaag, word die ensieme in hierdie studie aanloklik vir die biobrandstof industrie. Die rekombinante ensieme in hierdie studie verkry is ook vry van ander sellulases, ʼn eienskap wat van waarde is vir die papier en pulp industrie waar die sellulose vesels intak moet bly. Twee van die rekombinante xilinases, F10 en F11, was relatief stabiel by ʼn temperatuur van 50°C met ‘n pH optimum van pH 6, terwyl die rekombinante xilinase G1 slegs die helfte van sy aktiwitieit by hierdie temperatuur kon behou met ʼn pH optimum van pH 5. Geen samewerkende effek kon tussen die drie rekombinante xilinases waargeneem word nie. Toekomstige studies kan die samewerkende effek tussen hierdie rekombinante xilinases en bykomstige ensieme betrokke by xilaanafbraak, soos byvoorbeeld die esterases, ondersoek. Xilaanhidroliese vlakke kan aansienlik as gevolg van hierdie samewerkende effek verhoog, wat die koste van ensiem hidroliese van lignosellulose verder kan verlaag. / Stellenbosch University and the Technology Innovation Agency for financial support