Research Topic: biofilm formation

Cold atmospheric plasma improves antifungal responsiveness of Aspergillus flavus and Fusarium keratoplasticum conidia and mycelia

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Researchers tested a new treatment called cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) combined with antifungal medications against fungi that cause serious eye infections. CAP, which generates reactive molecules without heat, was found to make antifungal drugs work better against two major fungal pathogens. In some cases, drugs that previously didn’t work started working when combined with CAP. This approach could help treat difficult fungal eye infections that are resistant to standard medications.

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Candida krusei Empyema: A Lung Transplant Case and Systematic Review of the Literature

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Candida krusei is a dangerous yeast that causes a serious lung infection called empyema, where pus collects around the lungs. This infection is particularly difficult to treat because the yeast is resistant to common antifungal drugs like fluconazole and can form protective biofilms. This systematic review identified only ten cases of this rare infection in the medical literature, showing how uncommon but serious it is, and found that patients need aggressive treatment with multiple antifungal medications combined with surgical drainage to survive.

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Things you wanted to know about fungal extracellular vesicles (but were afraid to ask)

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Fungal extracellular vesicles (EVs) are tiny packages released by fungal cells that play important roles in fungal infections and how our immune system responds to them. Scientists have confirmed these EVs are real biological structures, not laboratory artifacts, and discovered they are produced by many different fungal species. Interestingly, these EVs can have opposite effects on the immune system depending on the fungus involved—sometimes helping our bodies fight infection and sometimes making infections worse, making them both potential vaccines and virulence factors.

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Virulence factors of Candida spp. isolated from COVID-19 patients: hydrolytic enzyme activity and biofilm formation

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, many hospitalized patients developed fungal infections caused by Candida yeasts alongside their coronavirus infection. Researchers studied 71 Candida samples from COVID-19 patients to understand how these fungi cause disease by examining three damaging enzymes they produce and their ability to form protective biofilm layers. The findings showed that these fungi are highly virulent, producing strong enzyme activity that helps them invade tissues and resist treatment, which helps explain why these infections are particularly dangerous in COVID-19 patients.

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Candida albicans Goliath cells pioneer biofilm formation

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When Candida albicans fungi run out of zinc, they transform into larger cells called ‘Goliath cells’ that are exceptionally sticky to plastic surfaces. Scientists found that these Goliath cells are much better at sticking to catheters and other medical devices than regular yeast cells, even when blood is flowing past them. This discovery helps explain why fungal infections on catheters are so common and could lead to better ways to prevent these dangerous infections that affect hospitalized patients.

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Vesicle inhibition reduces Candida biofilm resistance

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Researchers found that common FDA-approved drugs designed to block vesicle production in human cells can also reduce the protective matrix that Candida fungus builds around itself in biofilms. By combining these vesicle-blocking drugs with the antifungal fluconazole, the scientists were able to kill biofilm-forming Candida more effectively than either treatment alone. This discovery suggests a new approach to treating stubborn fungal infections on medical devices like catheters, potentially eliminating the need to surgically remove infected equipment.

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Overexpression of efflux pump and biofilm associated genes in itraconazole resistant Candida albicans isolates causing onychomycosis

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This study examined why some fungal nail infections caused by Candida albicans don’t respond to itraconazole treatment. Researchers found that resistant fungi have higher levels of genes that pump the antifungal drug out of their cells and genes that help them form protective biofilm layers. These findings suggest that combining itraconazole with drugs that block these pumps or disrupt biofilms could be more effective for treating stubborn fungal nail infections.

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