title: Aging as an emergent factor that contributes to phenotypic variation in Cryptococcus neoformans.
abstract: Cryptococcus neoformans, similar to other eukaryotes, undergoes replicative aging. Replicative life spans have been determined for clinical C. neoformans strains, and although they are a reproducible trait, life spans vary considerably among strains. C. neoformans has been proposed as an ideal model organism to investigate the contribution of replicative aging in a fungal pathogen population to emerging phenotypic variation during chronic cryptococcal infections. C. neoformans cells of advanced generational age manifest a distinct phenotype; specifically, a larger cell size, a thicker cell wall, drug resistance, as well as resistance to hydrogen peroxide-mediated killing. Consequently, old cells are selected in the host environment during chronic infection and aging could be an unanticipated mechanism of pathogen adaptation that contributes to persistent disease. Aging as a natural process of phenotypic variation should be further studied as it likely is also relevant for other eukaryotic pathogen populations that undergo asymmetric replicative aging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine (Division of Infectious Diseases), Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Tejas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bouklas
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine (Division of Infectious Diseases), Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA; Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA. Electronic address: bettina.fries@stonybrookmedicine.edu.
authors.forename: Bettina C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Fries
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003453:Cryptococcosis / Q000382:microbiology; D003455:Cryptococcus neoformans / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D025141:Drug Resistance, Fungal; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000633:toxicity; D050296:Microbial Viability / Q000187:drug effects; D010641:Phenotype
chemical_list: D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide
keywords: Aging; C. neoformans; Pathogen; Phenotypic variation