Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun;132(6):4310-4320.
doi: 10.1111/jam.15544. Epub 2022 Apr 5.

A plant mannose-binding lectin and fluconazole: Key targets combination against Candida albicans

Marianela Del Rio  1 , Melisa B Radicioni  1 , Érica O Mello  2 , Suzanna F F Ribeiro  2 , Gabriel B Taveira  2 , André O Carvalho  2 , Laura de la Canal  1 , Valdirene M Gomes  2 , Mariana Regente  1
Affiliations

A plant mannose-binding lectin and fluconazole: Key targets combination against Candida albicans

Marianela Del Rio et al. J Appl Microbiol. 2022 Jun.

Abstract

Aims: This study aimed to evaluate the combined effect of a mannose-binding lectin Helja with fluconazole (FLC) on Candida albicans and to get insights about the joint action mechanism.

Methods and results: The fungal growth was assessed following the optical density at 630 nm. Fungal cell morphology and nucleus integrity were analysed by flow cytometry and confocal laser scanning microscopy using Calcofluor White (CFW) and 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining respectively. The basis of Helja + FLC action on cell wall and plasma membrane was analysed using perturbing agents. The Helja + FLC combination exhibited an inhibitory effect of fungal growth about three times greater than the sum of both compounds separately and inhibited fungal morphological plasticity, an important virulence attribute associated with drug resistance. Cells treated with Helja + FLC showed morphological changes, nucleus disintegration and formation of multimera structures, leading to cell collapse.

Conclusions: Our findings indicate that the Helja + FLC combination exhibited a potent antifungal activity based on their simultaneous action on different microbial cell targets.

Significance and impact of study: The combination of a natural protein with conventional drugs might be helpful for the design of effective therapeutic strategies against Candida, contributing to minimize the development of drug resistance and host cell toxicity.

Keywords: action mechanism; azoles; cell wall; combination therapy; jacalin; plant antifungal lectin; plasma membrane.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Achkar, J.M. & Fries, B.C. (2010) Candida infections of the genitourinary tract. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, 23(2), 253-273.
    1. Ansari, M., Fatima, Z. & Hameed, S. (2016a) Anticandidal effect and mechanisms of monoterpenoid perillyl alcohol against Candida albicans. PLoS One, 11, e0162465.
    1. Ansari, M., Fatima, Z. & Hameed, S. (2016b) Mechanistic insights into the mode of action of anticandidal sesamol. Microbial Pathogenesis, 98, 140-148.
    1. Brand, A., MacCallum, D., Brown, A., Gow, N. & Odds, F. (2004) Ectopic expression of URA3 can influence the virulence phenotypes and proteome of Candida albicans but can be overcome by targeted reintegration of URA3 at the RPS10 locus. Eukaryotic Cell, 3, 900-909.
    1. Chen, X., Ren, B., Chen, M., Liu, M.X., Ren, W., Wang, Q.X. et al. (2014) ASDCD: antifungal synergistic drug combination database. PLoS One, 9, e86499.