title: Role of the homologous recombination genes RAD51 and RAD59 in the resistance of Candida albicans to UV light, radiomimetic and anti-tumor compounds and oxidizing agents.
abstract: We have cloned and characterized the RAD51 and RAD59 orthologs of the pathogenic fungus Candida albicans. CaRad51 exhibited more than 50% identity with several other eukaryotes and the conserved the catalytic domain of a bacterial RecA. As compared to the parental strain, null strains of rad51 exhibited a filamentous morphology, had a decreased grow rate and exhibited a moderate sensitivity to UV light, oxidizing agents, and compounds that cause double-strand breaks (DSB), indicating a role in DNA repair. By comparison, the rad52 null had a higher percentage of filaments, a more severe growth defect and a greater sensitivity to DNA-damaging compounds. Null strains of rad59 showed a UV-sensitive phenotype but behaved similarly to the parental strain in the rest of the assays. As compared to Saccharomyces cerevisiae, C. albicans was much more resistant to bleomycin and the same was true for their respective homologous recombination (HR) mutants. These results indicate that, as described in S. cerevisiae, RAD52 plays a more prominent role than RAD51 in the repair of DSBs in C. albicans and suggest the existence of at least two Rad52-dependent HR pathways, one dependent and one independent of Rad51.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Microbiología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06071 Badajoz, Spain.
authors.forename: Fátima
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: García-Prieto
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gómez-Raja
authors.forename: Encarnación
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Andaluz
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Calderone
authors.forename: Germán
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Larriba
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects*; D053903:DNA Breaks, Double-Stranded / Q000187:drug effects / Q000528:radiation effects; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000187:drug effects / Q000528:radiation effects; D004260:DNA Repair / Q000187:drug effects / Q000528:radiation effects; D025141:Drug Resistance, Fungal; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D016877:Oxidants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051135:Rad51 Recombinase / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D011836:Radiation Tolerance; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D005656:Fungal Proteins; D016877:Oxidants; D051135:Rad51 Recombinase