Zap1 regulates zinc homeostasis and modulates virulence in Cryptococcus gattii.

ABSTRACT: Zinc homeostasis is essential for fungal growth, as this metal is a critical structural component of several proteins, including transcription factors. The fungal pathogen Cryptococcus gattii obtains zinc from the stringent zinc-limiting milieu of the host during the infection process. To characterize the zinc metabolism in C. gattii and its relationship to fungal virulence, the zinc finger protein Zap1 was functionally characterized. The C. gattii ZAP1 gene is an ortholog of the master regulatory genes zafA and ZAP1 that are found in Aspergillus fumigatus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, respectively. There is some evidence to support an association between Zap1 and zinc metabolism in C. gattii: (i) ZAP1 expression is highly induced during zinc deprivation, (ii) ZAP1 knockouts demonstrate im

SUBMITTER: Schneider Rde O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3423376 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature