The emerging fungal pathogen <i>Candida auris</i> induces IFNγ to colonize mammalian hair follicles.

ABSTRACT: Public health alarm concerning the emerging fungus Candida auris is fueled by its antifungal drug resistance and propensity to cause deadly outbreaks. Persistent skin colonization drives transmission and lethal sepsis although its basis remains mysterious. We compared the skin colonization dynamics of C. auris with its relative C. albicans, quantifying skin fungal persistence and distribution and immune composition and positioning. C. auris displayed a higher propensity to colonize hair follicles and avidly bound to human hair. While C. albicans triggered an effective sterilizing type 3/17 antifungal immune response driven by IL-17A/F-producing lymphocytes, C. auris triggered a type 1, IFNγ-driven immune response targeting hair follicles. Rather th

SUBMITTER: Merrill ED 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11760791 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature