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| candida glabrata-credit: Ewa Ksiezopolska and Toni Gabaldon |
"Working together with researchers in the Université Paris-Sud in France and University Medical Centre Göttingen in Germany, ICREA Research Professor Toni Gabaldón and his team at the Centre for Genomic Regulation in Barcelona read the genetic code of 33 separate strains of the yeast Candida glabrata, the second most common cause of candidiasis.
They discovered that all the samples were very different from each other at a genetic level, particularly within genes encoding molecules that help the yeast to infect humans.
Until now, it was thought that C. glabrata only reproduced asexually by budding, even though the yeast contains genes required for sexual reproduction.
Gabaldón and his team found strong genetic evidence that C. glabrata could reproduce sexually, giving it the opportunity to swap genetic information. This ability may give the yeast new ways to evolve resistance to treatment and increase their infectious ability.
By using this genetic data to reconstruct a 'family tree' for all the strains, the researchers showed that there were originally seven distinct types of C. glabrata in separate parts of the world which have only recently come into contact and intermingled, presumably as a result of increased global human migration and travel.
The findings also raise some intriguing questions about the lifestyle of C. glabrata, which was previously thought only to survive on the human body.
Microbes that can only live on one organism (known as obligate commensals) tend to evolve in lock-step with their host, with specific strains tending to be restricted to particular geographical areas..."
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They discovered that all the samples were very different from each other at a genetic level, particularly within genes encoding molecules that help the yeast to infect humans.
Until now, it was thought that C. glabrata only reproduced asexually by budding, even though the yeast contains genes required for sexual reproduction.
Gabaldón and his team found strong genetic evidence that C. glabrata could reproduce sexually, giving it the opportunity to swap genetic information. This ability may give the yeast new ways to evolve resistance to treatment and increase their infectious ability.
By using this genetic data to reconstruct a 'family tree' for all the strains, the researchers showed that there were originally seven distinct types of C. glabrata in separate parts of the world which have only recently come into contact and intermingled, presumably as a result of increased global human migration and travel.
The findings also raise some intriguing questions about the lifestyle of C. glabrata, which was previously thought only to survive on the human body.
Microbes that can only live on one organism (known as obligate commensals) tend to evolve in lock-step with their host, with specific strains tending to be restricted to particular geographical areas..."
Learn more:
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