GSE133464
The Negative Cofactor 2 complex is a master regulator of drug resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus [RNA-seq]
The Negative cofactor 2 (NCT) complex is an evolutionally conserved heterodimeric transcription factor. In Aspergillus fumigatus, the NCT complex consists of two subunits NctA and NctB. Through a genome-wide screening of a transcription factor null mutant strains, we found that loss of the NCT complex leads to a multi-drug resistance phenotype including the azoles (itraconazole, voriconazole and posaconazole) as well as the salvage therapeutic amphotericin B, and terbinafine. To obtain further insight into the molecular mechanisms driving the azole-resistance in the NCT complex null mutants, we analyzed genome-wide gene expression profiles of the nctA and the nctB null mutants using RNA-seq. Our expression profiling revealed that disruption of the genes lead to upregulation of several ergosterol biosynthetic genes, their transcriptional activators, and the azole efflux pump cdr1B. Taken together, these results suggest that the NCT complex plays a role as a master regulator of drug resistance in A. fumigatus. Overall design: Genome-wide gene expression profile was investigated in the wild-type, the nctA null, and the nctB null mutant using RNA-seq in the absence and the presence of itraconazole (0.5 mg/mL) with three biological replicates.