Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Infection and Immunity logoLink to Infection and Immunity
. 1993 May;61(5):1823–1828. doi: 10.1128/iai.61.5.1823-1828.1993

Coordinate regulation of two opaque-phase-specific genes during white-opaque switching in Candida albicans.

B Morrow 1, T Srikantha 1, J Anderson 1, D R Soll 1
PMCID: PMC280771  PMID: 8478072

Abstract

Cells of Candida albicans WO-1 switch spontaneously and frequently between a white and an opaque CFU. Recently, an opaque-phase-specific cDNA, PEP1, was cloned and was demonstrated to code for a pepsinogen. By using a differential hybridization screen, a second opaque-phase-specific cDNA, Op4, has been isolated and its corresponding gene has been cloned. Op4 is coordinately regulated with PEP1 but resides on a different chromosome. During temperature-induced mass conversion from opaque to white, transcription of PEP1 and Op4 is immediately inhibited by the increase in temperature, but transcription of both genes can be rapidly reestablished by a downshift in temperature prior to phenotypic commitment. However, the capacity to rapidly induce both PEP1 and Op4 is lost coincidentally with the second semisynchronous round of cell division and phenotypic commitment during mass conversion. Op4 shows no significant base or amino acid sequence homology with a known gene or protein, respectively. However, the deduced Op4 protein exhibits several interesting characteristics, including a hydrophobic amino terminus with 26 amino acids, a pI of 10.73 for the last 100 amino acids, two serine repeats adjacent to alanine repeats, and the potential for alpha-helical conformation within the alanine-rich sequences. No genomic reorganization was evident in the proximity of Op4 during transcriptional activation and deactivation accompanying the white-opaque transition.

Full text

PDF
1823

Images in this article

1824Image
on p.1824
1825Image
on p.1825
1825Image
on p.1825
1826Image
on p.1826
1826Image
on p.1826

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Anderson J. M., Soll D. R. Unique phenotype of opaque cells in the white-opaque transition of Candida albicans. J Bacteriol. 1987 Dec;169(12):5579–5588. doi: 10.1128/jb.169.12.5579-5588.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Anderson J., Cundiff L., Schnars B., Gao M. X., Mackenzie I., Soll D. R. Hypha formation in the white-opaque transition of Candida albicans. Infect Immun. 1989 Feb;57(2):458–467. doi: 10.1128/iai.57.2.458-467.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Anderson J., Mihalik R., Soll D. R. Ultrastructure and antigenicity of the unique cell wall pimple of the Candida opaque phenotype. J Bacteriol. 1990 Jan;172(1):224–235. doi: 10.1128/jb.172.1.224-235.1990. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bankier A. T., Weston K. M., Barrell B. G. Random cloning and sequencing by the M13/dideoxynucleotide chain termination method. Methods Enzymol. 1987;155:51–93. doi: 10.1016/0076-6879(87)55009-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Bedell G. W., Soll D. R. Effects of low concentrations of zinc on the growth and dimorphism of Candida albicans: evidence for zinc-resistant and -sensitive pathways for mycelium formation. Infect Immun. 1979 Oct;26(1):348–354. doi: 10.1128/iai.26.1.348-354.1979. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Bergen M. S., Voss E., Soll D. R. Switching at the cellular level in the white-opaque transition of Candida albicans. J Gen Microbiol. 1990 Oct;136(10):1925–1936. doi: 10.1099/00221287-136-10-1925. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Borst P., Greaves D. R. Programmed gene rearrangements altering gene expression. Science. 1987 Feb 6;235(4789):658–667. doi: 10.1126/science.3544215. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Buffo J., Herman M. A., Soll D. R. A characterization of pH-regulated dimorphism in Candida albicans. Mycopathologia. 1984 Mar 15;85(1-2):21–30. doi: 10.1007/BF00436698. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Chomczynski P., Sacchi N. Single-step method of RNA isolation by acid guanidinium thiocyanate-phenol-chloroform extraction. Anal Biochem. 1987 Apr;162(1):156–159. doi: 10.1006/abio.1987.9999. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Chou P. Y., Fasman G. D. Prediction of protein conformation. Biochemistry. 1974 Jan 15;13(2):222–245. doi: 10.1021/bi00699a002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Devereux J., Haeberli P., Smithies O. A comprehensive set of sequence analysis programs for the VAX. Nucleic Acids Res. 1984 Jan 11;12(1 Pt 1):387–395. doi: 10.1093/nar/12.1part1.387. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Ghannoum M. A., Swairjo I., Soll D. R. Variation in lipid and sterol contents in Candida albicans white and opaque phenotypes. J Med Vet Mycol. 1990;28(2):103–115. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Jackson R. L., Busch S. J., Cardin A. D. Glycosaminoglycans: molecular properties, protein interactions, and role in physiological processes. Physiol Rev. 1991 Apr;71(2):481–539. doi: 10.1152/physrev.1991.71.2.481. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Kennedy M. J., Rogers A. L., Hanselmen L. R., Soll D. R., Yancey R. J., Jr Variation in adhesion and cell surface hydrophobicity in Candida albicans white and opaque phenotypes. Mycopathologia. 1988 Jun;102(3):149–156. doi: 10.1007/BF00437397. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Kolotila M. P., Diamond R. D. Effects of neutrophils and in vitro oxidants on survival and phenotypic switching of Candida albicans WO-1. Infect Immun. 1990 May;58(5):1174–1179. doi: 10.1128/iai.58.5.1174-1179.1990. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Lee K. L., Buckley H. R., Campbell C. C. An amino acid liquid synthetic medium for the development of mycelial and yeast forms of Candida Albicans. Sabouraudia. 1975 Jul;13(2):148–153. doi: 10.1080/00362177585190271. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. McEachern M. J., Hicks J. B. Dosage of the smallest chromosome affects both the yeast-hyphal transition and the white-opaque transition of Candida albicans WO-1. J Bacteriol. 1991 Dec;173(23):7436–7442. doi: 10.1128/jb.173.23.7436-7442.1991. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Morrow B., Srikantha T., Soll D. R. Transcription of the gene for a pepsinogen, PEP1, is regulated by white-opaque switching in Candida albicans. Mol Cell Biol. 1992 Jul;12(7):2997–3005. doi: 10.1128/mcb.12.7.2997. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Pomés R., Gil C., Nombela C. Genetic analysis of Candida albicans morphological mutants. J Gen Microbiol. 1985 Aug;131(8):2107–2113. doi: 10.1099/00221287-131-8-2107. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Queen C., Korn L. J. A comprehensive sequence analysis program for the IBM personal computer. Nucleic Acids Res. 1984 Jan 11;12(1 Pt 2):581–599. doi: 10.1093/nar/12.1part2.581. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Rikkerink E. H., Magee B. B., Magee P. T. Opaque-white phenotype transition: a programmed morphological transition in Candida albicans. J Bacteriol. 1988 Feb;170(2):895–899. doi: 10.1128/jb.170.2.895-899.1988. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Slutsky B., Buffo J., Soll D. R. High-frequency switching of colony morphology in Candida albicans. Science. 1985 Nov 8;230(4726):666–669. doi: 10.1126/science.3901258. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Slutsky B., Staebell M., Anderson J., Risen L., Pfaller M., Soll D. R. "White-opaque transition": a second high-frequency switching system in Candida albicans. J Bacteriol. 1987 Jan;169(1):189–197. doi: 10.1128/jb.169.1.189-197.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Soll D. R. High-frequency switching in Candida albicans. Clin Microbiol Rev. 1992 Apr;5(2):183–203. doi: 10.1128/cmr.5.2.183. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Soll D. R. The regulation of cellular differentiation in the dimorphic yeast Candida albicans. Bioessays. 1986 Jul;5(1):5–11. doi: 10.1002/bies.950050103. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Vollrath D., Davis R. W. Resolution of DNA molecules greater than 5 megabases by contour-clamped homogeneous electric fields. Nucleic Acids Res. 1987 Oct 12;15(19):7865–7876. doi: 10.1093/nar/15.19.7865. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Infection and Immunity are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES