Role of Some Transcription Factors on Candida albicans Cell Wall Biosynthesis Exposed to Caspofunginin Different Growth Conditions

Abstract

Transcription factors are proteins encoded in the genome, which are essential for the regulation of gene expression in ‎all ‎living organisms and controlling the different bioactivity of the organisms.Concerning ‎Candida albicans, many of these transcription factors are unknown ‎function till now, and there is no clear data about the transcription factors network that control the genes that involved in cell wall ‎biosynthesis, which is ‎a very important process related with fungal activity and resistance‎to antifungal agents.‎ This study aims to discover the transcription factors that correlate with the ‎Caspofungin response during infection as a first step towards defining their ‎function in cell wall biogenesis and drug-resistant process.‎ A group of mutant strains of C albicans included in this study were used to screen the ‎transcription factors that related to their response to Caspofungin.All strains exposed to ‎a subinhibitory concentration of Caspofungin in two different conditions on ‎YPD medium at 25C and on RPMI 1640 (supplemented with 10% serum) at 37 o C to ‎mimic the host conditions.‎ TEM pictures were used to study the morphological changes of the cell wall in the study circumstances. Data showed that (mig1∆/∆ and orf19.173∆/∆) mutant strains are sensitive to ‎Caspofungin in host growth condition (on RPMI 1640) medium at 37 o C but not on the YPD medium at 25 o C.In addition, TEM pictures showed a clear thickness in the ‎cell wall of (mig1∆/∆ and orf19.173∆/∆) mutant strains with numerous cell wall ‎protrusions when exposed to Caspofungin.‎ This study concludes that mig1 and orf19.173 transcription factors ‎play a role in ‎the C.‎albicans cell wall biosynthesis in response to Caspofungin in the ‎host conditions.‎