| First Author | Phan QT | Year | 2023 |
| Journal | PLoS Pathog | Volume | 19 |
| Issue | 8 | Pages | e1011579 |
| PubMed ID | 37611070 | Mgi Jnum | J:340566 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:7528045 | Doi | 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011579 |
| Citation | Phan QT, et al. (2023) Candida albicans stimulates formation of a multi-receptor complex that mediates epithelial cell invasion during oropharyngeal infection. PLoS Pathog 19(8):e1011579 |
| abstractText | Fungal invasion of the oral epithelium is central to the pathogenesis of oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC). Candida albicans invades the oral epithelium by receptor-induced endocytosis but this process is incompletely understood. We found that C. albicans infection of oral epithelial cells induces c-Met to form a multi-protein complex with E-cadherin and the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). E-cadherin is necessary for C. albicans to activate both c-Met and EGFR and to induce the endocytosis of C. albicans. Proteomics analysis revealed that c-Met interacts with C. albicans Hyr1, Als3 and Ssa1. Both Hyr1 and Als3 are required for C. albicans to stimulate c-Met and EGFR in oral epithelial cells in vitro and for full virulence during OPC in mice. Treating mice with small molecule inhibitors of c-Met and EGFR ameliorates OPC, demonstrating the potential therapeutic efficacy of blocking these host receptors for C. albicans. |
