title: Prediction of phenotype-associated genes via a cellular network approach: a Candida albicans infection case study.
abstract: Candida albicans is the most prevalent opportunistic fungal pathogen in humans causing superficial and serious systemic infections. The infection process can be divided into three stages: adhesion, invasion, and host cell damage. To enhance our understanding of these C. albicans infection stages, this study aimed to predict phenotype-associated genes involved during these three infection stages and their roles in C. albicans-host interactions. In light of the principles that proteins that lie closer to one another in a protein interaction network are more likely to have similar functions, and that genes regulated by the same transcription factors tend to have similar functions, a cellular network approach was proposed to predict the phenotype-associated genes in this study. A total of 4, 12, and 3 genes were predicted as adhesion-, invasion-, and damage-associated genes during C. albicans infection, respectively. These predicted genes highlight the facts that cell surface components are critical for cell adhesion, and that morphogenesis is crucial for cell invasion. In addition, they provide targets for further investigations into the mechanisms of the three C. albicans infection stages. These results give insights into the responses elicited in C. albicans during interaction with the host, possibly instrumental in identifying novel therapies to treat C. albicans infection.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Control and Systems Biology, Department of Electrical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Chao
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shin-Hao
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Chung-Yu
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Lan
authors.forename: Bor-Sen
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D002176:Candida albicans; D019295:Computational Biology; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005800:Genes, Fungal; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007239:Infections / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D010641:Phenotype; D060066:Protein Interaction Maps / Q000235:genetics*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D005656:Fungal Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors