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The Chitin Connection

Chitin, a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, is an essential component of the fungal cell wall. Chitosan, a deacetylated form of chitin, is also important in maintaining cell wall integrity and is essential for Cryptococcus neoformans virulence. In their article, Gilbert et al. [N. M. Gilbert, L. G. Ba...

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Autores principales: Goldman, David L., Vicencio, Alfin G.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: American Society of Microbiology 2012
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3315704/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22448043
http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mBio.00056-12
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author Goldman, David L.
Vicencio, Alfin G.
author_facet Goldman, David L.
Vicencio, Alfin G.
author_sort Goldman, David L.
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description Chitin, a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, is an essential component of the fungal cell wall. Chitosan, a deacetylated form of chitin, is also important in maintaining cell wall integrity and is essential for Cryptococcus neoformans virulence. In their article, Gilbert et al. [N. M. Gilbert, L. G. Baker, C. A. Specht, and J. K. Lodge, mBio 3(1):e00007-12, 2012] demonstrate that the enzyme responsible for chitosan synthesis, chitin deacetylase (CDA), is differentially attached to the cell membrane and wall. Bioactivity is localized to the cell membrane, where it is covalently linked via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor. Findings from this study significantly enhance our understanding of cryptococcal cell wall biology. Besides the role of chitin in supporting structural stability, chitin and host enzymes with chitinase activity have an important role in host defense and modifying the inflammatory response. Thus, chitin appears to provide a link between the fungus and host that involves both innate and adaptive immune responses. Recently, there has been increased attention to the role of chitinases in the pathogenesis of allergic inflammation, especially asthma. We review these findings and explore the possible connection between fungal infections, the induction of chitinases, and asthma.
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spelling pubmed-33157042012-03-30 The Chitin Connection Goldman, David L. Vicencio, Alfin G. mBio Commentary Chitin, a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, is an essential component of the fungal cell wall. Chitosan, a deacetylated form of chitin, is also important in maintaining cell wall integrity and is essential for Cryptococcus neoformans virulence. In their article, Gilbert et al. [N. M. Gilbert, L. G. Baker, C. A. Specht, and J. K. Lodge, mBio 3(1):e00007-12, 2012] demonstrate that the enzyme responsible for chitosan synthesis, chitin deacetylase (CDA), is differentially attached to the cell membrane and wall. Bioactivity is localized to the cell membrane, where it is covalently linked via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor. Findings from this study significantly enhance our understanding of cryptococcal cell wall biology. Besides the role of chitin in supporting structural stability, chitin and host enzymes with chitinase activity have an important role in host defense and modifying the inflammatory response. Thus, chitin appears to provide a link between the fungus and host that involves both innate and adaptive immune responses. Recently, there has been increased attention to the role of chitinases in the pathogenesis of allergic inflammation, especially asthma. We review these findings and explore the possible connection between fungal infections, the induction of chitinases, and asthma. American Society of Microbiology 2012-03-23 /pmc/articles/PMC3315704/ /pubmed/22448043 http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mBio.00056-12 Text en Copyright © 2012 Goldman and Vicencio. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/) , which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Commentary
Goldman, David L.
Vicencio, Alfin G.
The Chitin Connection
title The Chitin Connection
title_full The Chitin Connection
title_fullStr The Chitin Connection
title_full_unstemmed The Chitin Connection
title_short The Chitin Connection
title_sort chitin connection
topic Commentary
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3315704/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22448043
http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mBio.00056-12
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