Dataset Information

It takes a village: Phagocytes play a central role in fungal immunity.

ABSTRACT: Phagocytosis is an essential step in the innate immune response to invasive fungal infections. This process is carried out by a proverbial "village" of professional phagocytic cells, which have evolved efficient machinery to recognize and ingest pathogens, namely macrophages, neutrophils and dendritic cells. These innate immune cells drive early cytokine production, fungicidal activity, antigen presentation and activation of the adaptive immune system. Despite the development of antifungal agents with potent activity, the biological activity of professional phagocytic innate immune cells has proven indispensable in protecting a host from invasive fungal infections. Additionally, an emerging body of evidence suggests non-professional phagocytes, such as airway epithelial cells, carry out phagocytosis and may play a critical role in the elimination of fungal pathogens. Here, we review recent advances of phagocytosis by both professional and non-professional phagocytes in response to fungal pathogens, with a focus on invasive aspergillosis as a model disease.

SUBMITTER: Feldman MB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6235731 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

It takes a village: Phagocytes play a central role in fungal immunity.

Feldman Michael B MB Vyas Jatin M JM Mansour Michael K MK

Seminars in cell & developmental biology 20180612

Phagocytosis is an essential step in the innate immune response to invasive fungal infections. This process is carried out by a proverbial "village" of professional phagocytic cells, which have evolved efficient machinery to recognize and ingest pathogens, namely macrophages, neutrophils and dendritic cells. These innate immune cells drive early cytokine production, fungicidal activity, antigen presentation and activation of the adaptive immune system. Despite the development of antifungal agent ...[more]

PMID: 29727727

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundPhysical activity (PA) among Hispanic and other minority adolescents in the U.S. lag behind White, non-Hispanic adolescents. Previous studies have examined the beneficial impact of culturally informed, community-based health programs within the Hispanic community on PA levels. There is a need for longer term follow up to determine the impact on family and individual habits over time. Our study aims to explore the aspects of a two-year PA and nutrition program, Families Inspired Together 4 Youth Empowered to Succeed (FIT4YES), that continue to influence family health habits and child development.MethodsCommunity-based focus groups were held in Milwaukee, WI with Hispanic parent participants of the FIT4YES program three years after program conclusion. A semi-structured guide of open-ended questions was used to facilitate the discussion of the lasting impact of FIT4YES. Each group was audio recorded, transcribed, and translated from Spanish when necessary. Four student researchers utilized a grounded theory qualitative approach to identify overarching themes.ResultsThree focus groups with 16 total parents (N = 16) spoke about the program. Three overarching themes emerged from the transcripts indicating that cultural exposure, relationships, and self-growth were necessary for families to sustain the healthy behaviors promoted in FIT4YES. Specifically, parents discussed increased comfort levels with their children participating in school sports, the impact of shared experiences with community members, and continued skills initially taught and practiced during active programming.ConclusionsOur group adapted our previously published model to a "post-program" state that incorporated the major themes and sub-themes with levels of the social-ecological model. Although the FIT4YES program ended, multiple ideals instilled by the program continued, we believe, due to the common themes illustrated by our model. This study utilized a community check-in approach to gain insight into the long-term impacts of the FIT4YES program. We propose three recommendations for consideration in the creation of community-based health programs: utilize dynamic, culturally appropriate components based on the intended community; understand the strength of the program as a whole is dependent on the strength of each individual component; and incorporate an anchor institution for consistency and trust within the community.

Project description:The rumen protozoa, alongside fungi, comprise the eukaryotic portion of the rumen microbiome. Rumen protozoa may account for up to 50% of biomass, yet their role in this ecosystem remains unclear. Early experiments inferred a role in carbohydrate and protein metabolism, but due to their close association with bacteria, definitively attributing these functions to the protozoa was challenging. The advent of 'omic technologies has created opportunities to broaden our understanding of the rumen protozoa. This study aimed to utilize these methods to further our understanding of the role that protozoa play in the rumen in terms of their metabolic capacities, and in doing so, contribute valuable sequence data to reduce the chance of mis or under-representation of the rumen protozoa in meta'omic datasets. Rumen protozoa were isolated and purified using glucose-based sedimentation and differential centrifugation, extracted RNA was Poly(A) fraction enriched and DNase treated before use in a phage-based, cDNA metatranscriptomic library. Biochemical activity testing of the phage library showed 6 putatively positive plaques in response to carboxymethyl cellulose agar (indicative of cellulose activity), and no positive results for tributyrin (indicative of esterase/lipase activity) or egg yolk agar (indicative of proteolysis). Direct sequencing of the cDNA was also conducted using the Illumina HiSeq 2500. The metatranscriptome identified a wealth of carbohydrate-active enzymes which accounted for 8% of total reads. The most highly expressed carbohydrate-active enzymes were glycosyl hydrolases 5 and 11, polysaccharide lyases and deacetylases, xylanases and enzymes active against pectin, mannan and chitin; the latter likely used to digest rumen fungi which contain a chitin-rich cell membrane. Codon usage analysis of expressed genes also showed evidence of horizontal gene transfer, suggesting that many of these enzymes were acquired from the rumen bacteria in an evolutionary response to the carbohydrate-rich environment of the rumen. This study provides evidence of the significant contribution that the protozoa make to carbohydrate breakdown in the rumen, potentially using horizontally acquired genes, and highlights their predatory capacity.

Dataset Information

It takes a village: Phagocytes play a central role in fungal immunity.

Publications

It takes a village: Phagocytes play a central role in fungal immunity.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets