Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)

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    SrbA-regulation of ergosterol biosynthesis in Aspergillus fumigatus : gateway to azole resistance & hypoxia adaptation
    (Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2013) Blosser, Sara Jean; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Robert Cramer; Robert A. Cramer was a co-author of the article, 'Srebp-dependent triazole susceptibility in Aspergillus fumigatus is mediated through direct transcriptional regulation of erg11A (cyp51A)' in the journal 'Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy' which is contained within this thesis.; Brittney Hendrickson, Nora Grahl, Bridget M. Barker and Robert A. Cramer were co-authors of the article, 'Two C4-sterol methyl oxidases (erg25) catalyze ergosterol intermediate demethylation and impact environmental stress adaptation in Aspergillus fumigatus' submitted to the journal 'Molecular microbiology' which is contained within this thesis.; Robert A. Cramer was a co-author of the article, 'Removal of C4-methyl sterol accumulation in an Srebp-null mutant of Aspergillus fumigatus restores hypoxia growth' submitted to the journal 'PLoS pathogens' which is contained within this thesis.
    Aspergillus fumigatus is a human fungal pathogen and the primary cause of Invasive Aspergillosis (IA). A rise in susceptible patient populations has dramatically increased the incidence of IA, and led to the emergence of triazole antifungal drug resistance. Triazoles target Erg11, an enzyme involved in ergosterol biosynthesis. Ergosterol biosynthesis has been widely targeted for antifungal drug development, but little is known about this pathway in A. fumigatus. We have identified a transcription factor, SrbA, which mediates triazole susceptibility, growth in hypoxia and low iron, and virulence during IA. Transcriptional studies identify ergosterol biosynthesis as one of the major genetic targets of SrbA, including erg11 and erg25. In this study, we examined the mechanism of Delta srbA triazole susceptibility. Construction of an erg11A conditional expression strain in the Delta srbA background restored erg11A transcript levels and, consequently, wild-type sensitivity to fluconazole and voriconazole. However, pniiAerg11A-Delta srbA did not restore hypoxia growth or the total ergosterol defect of Delta srbA. Increased accumulation of C4-methyl sterols indicates that the Erg25-step of ergosterol biosynthesis is defective in these strains. A. fumigatus encodes for two C4-demethylases, erg25A and erg25B. Erg25A serves in a primary role over Erg25B, as Delta erg25A accumulates more C4-methyl sterol intermediates than Delta erg25B. That both erg25 genes retain function, and are not limited to a singular substrate is unique in the eukaryotic kingdom. Genetic deletion of both erg25 genes is lethal, and single deletion of these genes revealed alterations in ergosterol biosynthesis. Delta erg25A displayed moderate sensitivity to hypoxia, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and dithiothreitol, but was not required for virulence in a murine model of IA. Erg25 assists in the ability of A. fumigatus to grow in hypoxia, as construction of a strain that constitutively expresses erg25A in the Delta srbA background restored the hypoxia growth defect of Delta srbA. This restoration revealed substantial insufficiencies in pflavA-erg25A-Delta srbA when adapting to hypoxia, as this strain was hypersensitive to cell wall perturbation and ROS. Additionally, restoration of erg25A impacted triazole antifungal susceptibility of Delta srbA, demonstrating a complex feedback system involved in ergosterol biosynthesis. These results demonstrate SrbA's involvement in a dynamic stress adaptation program mediated in part through ergosterol biosynthesis.
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    The role of the recruited neutrophil in the innate response to Aspergillus fumigatus
    (Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2005) Bonnett, Colin Russell; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: James B. Burritt
    Strong clinical and experimental evidence links qualitative and quantitative neutrophil deficiencies to fatal infections caused by A. fumigatus. Yet the role of the neutrophil in mediating the protection observed in normal hosts remains largely unknown. Recent studies indicate neutrophils from CXCR2-/- mice are unable to migrate toward chemokine gradients of KC and MIP-2, rendering these animals susceptible to fatal aspergillosis. Mice with a mutation in the gene encoding for the gp91phox component of the NADPH oxidase lack the ability to generate the reactive oxygen metabolites used by phagocytes in killing microbial pathogens, and these mice are also susceptible to invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. In this investigation of the innate response to A. fumigatus, CXCR2-/- and gp91-/- mice were used to mimic the qualitative and quantitative neutrophil defects that are known to predispose to invasive pulmonary aspergillosis, the most lethal form of Aspergillus diseases. By comparing the nature of the predisposition of these mice with the robust immunity observed in normal and immunocompetent mice, insight was gained on the involvement of this key phagocyte in the innate response. Several important parameters of the innate response in the lung were analyzed in this investigation, including (1) leukocyte recruitment and organism engagement, (2) organism killing mechanisms, (3) cytokine levels of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and (4) in vitro organism killing by leukocytes. Following intratracheal challenge of A. fumigatus conidia a delay of 3 hours in neutrophil recruitment to lungs of CXCR2-/- animals was observed, allowing significant conidial germination and hyphal formation not seen in normal animals. In contrast, the gp91phox-/- mice recruited neutrophils normally but failed to inhibit conidial germination and hyphal proliferation, apparently as a result of their inability to generate the appropriate conidiacidal mediators. In normal mice inoculated conidia were rapidly sequestered within neutrophil aggregates involving a response by the phagocyte NADPH oxidase detected by formazan deposition. These results suggest a previously undescribed role for neutrophils that conduct early inflammatory events following exposure to A. fumigatus conidia, involving first sequestration of ungerminated conidia within neutrophil complexes, and subsequently oxidant generation that prevents hyphal outgrowth.
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