Cryptococcus neoformans is the top-ranked World Health Organization priority fungal pathogen due to its widespread distribution and inadequate treatment options. Additionally, as a basidiomycete yeast...

Published in PLoS pathogens

Cryptococcus is a ubiquitous environmental fungus and frequent colonizer of human lungs. Colonizatio

The outcome of the interaction between Cryptococcus neoformans and infected hosts can be determined

Publication date: Available online 19 June 2025 Source: Journal of Proteomics Author(s): Rafael F. Castelli, Haroldo C. de Oliveira, Marlon D.M. Santos, Amanda C. Camillo-Andrade, Flavia C.G. Dos Reis, Paulo C. Carvalho, Marcio L. Rodrigues

by Marco A. Coelho, Márcia David-Palma, Seonju Marincowitz, Janneke Aylward, Nam Q. Pham, Andrey M. Yurkov, Brenda D. Wingfield, Michael J. Wingfield, Sheng Sun, Joseph Heitman Sexual reproduction in basidiomycete fungi is governed by MAT loci (P/R and HD), which exhibit remarkable evolutionary plasticity, characterized by expansions, rearrangements, and gene losses often associated with mating system transitions. The sister genera Cryptococcus and Kwoniella provide a powerful framework for studying MAT loci evolution owing to their diverse reproductive strategies and distinct architectures, spanning bipolar and tetrapolar systems with either linked or unlinked MAT loci. Building on recent comparative genomic analyses, we generated additional chromosome-level assemblies, uncovering distinct trajectories shaping MAT loci organization. Contrasting with the small-scale expansions and gene acquisitions observed in Kwoniella, our analyses revealed independent expansions of the P/R locus in tetrapolar Cryptococcus, possibly driven by pheromone gene duplications. Notably, these expansions coincided with a pronounced GC-content reduction best explained by reduced GC-biased gene conversion following recombination suppression, rather than relaxed codon usage selection. Diverse modes of MAT locus linkage were also identified, including three previously unrecognized transitions: one resulting in a pseudobipolar arrangement and two leading to bipolarity. All three transitions involved translocations. In the pseudobipolar configuration, the P/R and HD loci remained on the same chromosome but genetically unlinked, whereas the bipolar transitions additionally featured rearrangements that fused the two loci into a nonrecombining region. Mating assays confirmed a sexual cycle in Cryptococcus decagattii, demonstrating its ability to undergo mating and sporulation. Progeny analysis in Kwoniella mangrovensis revealed substantial ploidy variation and aneuploidy, likely stemming from haploid–diploid mating, yet evidence of recombination and loss of heterozygosity indicates that meiotic exchange occurs despite irregular chromosome segregation. Our findings underscore the importance of continued diversity sampling and provide further evidence for convergent evolution of fused MAT loci in basidiomycetes, offering new insights into the genetic and chromosomal changes driving reproductive transitions.

       KBS 환경스페셜 (2008)    "둥지, 경이로운 건축술"   &nbs...

Cryptococcus neoformans has emerged as a frontrunner among deadly fungal pathogens and is particular

  A Tachyplesin Antimicrobial Peptide from Theraphosidae Spiders with Potent Antifungal Activity Against Cryptococcus neoformans Abstract The venoms of Theraphosidae spiders have evolved into diverse natural pharmacopeias through selective pressures. Cryptococcus neoformans is a global health threat that frequently causes life-threatening meningitis and fungemia, particularly in immunocompromised patients. In this study, we identify a novel anti-C. neoformans peptide, QS18 (QCFKVCFRKRCFTKCSRS), from the venom gland of China’s native spider species Chilobrachys liboensis by utilizing bioinformatic tools.

The opportunistic human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans has an enormous impact on human heal

Cryptococcus gattii is an emerging fungal pathogen that is acquired through the respiratory tract and causes invasive infections in both immunocompromised and otherwise healthy people. Many of these a...

Long thought to be sterile, our brains are now believed to harbour all sorts of micro-organisms, from bacteria to fungi. How big a part do they play in Alzheimer’s and similar diseases?