title: Human Epithelial Cells Discriminate between Commensal and Pathogenic Interactions with Candida albicans.
abstract: The commensal fungus, Candida albicans, can cause life-threatening infections in at risk individuals. C. albicans colonizes mucosal surfaces of most people, adhering to and interacting with epithelial cells. At low concentrations, C. albicans is not pathogenic nor does it cause epithelial cell damage in vitro; at high concentrations, C. albicans causes mucosal infections and kills epithelial cells in vitro. Here we show that while there are quantitative dose-dependent differences in exposed epithelial cell populations, these reflect a fundamental qualitative difference in host cell response to C. albicans. Using transcriptional profiling experiments and real time PCR, we found that wild-type C. albicans induce dose-dependent responses from a FaDu epithelial cell line. However, real time PCR and Western blot analysis using a high dose of various C. albicans strains demonstrated that these dose-dependent responses are associated with ability to promote host cell damage. Our studies support the idea that epithelial cells play a key role in the immune system by monitoring the microbial community at mucosal surfaces and initiating defensive responses when this community is dysfunctional. This places epithelial cells at a pivotal position in the interaction with C. albicans as epithelial cells themselves promote C. albicans stimulated damage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States of America.
authors.forename: Timothy J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Rast
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States of America.
authors.forename: Amy L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Kullas
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States of America.
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Southern
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States of America.
authors.forename: Dana A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Davis
mesh_terms: D002176:Candida albicans / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000502:physiology; D002460:Cell Line; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000382:microbiology*; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000235:genetics; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005656:Fungal Proteins; C489602:RIM101 protein, Candida albicans; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases