Long-Chain Fatty Acids Promote Candida albicans Gut Colonization by Restructuring the Fungal Cell Surface

<p><strong>Long-chain fatty acids promote <em>Candida albicans</em> gut colonization by restructuring the fungal cell surface </strong></p> <p>Musfirat Shubaita, BS</p> <p>Advisory Professor: J. Christian Perez, Ph.D.</p> <p>The yeast <em>Candida albicans</em> is a facultative anaerobe residing in the human digestive tract. Although fungal genetic determinants of mammalian host colonization have been identified, little is known about signals and molecules in the intestinal environment that influence <em>C. albicans</em> proliferation. Previously unpublished data from the Perez lab showed that oleic acid, one of the most abundant long-chain fatty acids in nature, promotes <em>C. albicans</em> colonization of the murine intestine. The goal of this research is to investigate the role of oleic acid in <em>C. albicans </em>gut colonization. I hypothesized that oleic acid promotes, either directly or indirectly, the expression of <em>C. albicans</em> molecules that facilitate the persistence of this fungus in the intestinal domain. I found that β-oxidation, a catabolic process used to break down fatty acids for energy production, was dispensable for <em>C. albicans</em> to colonize mice fed a high-oleic acid diet. Transcriptome analysis revealed that, under anaerobic conditions, oleic acid promoted the expression of several <em>C. albicans</em> transcription factors, which are known to positively regulate intestinal colonization. Furthermore, oleic acid induced the expression of a variety of adhesins and cell surface components. Finally, I identified <em>SOK1</em> as an oleic acid-induced kinase that dictates cell wall mannan exposure and binding to intestinal mucin under anaerobic conditions. Taken together, these findings indicate that in environments largely void of oxygen (like the colon), dietary oleic acid promotes a <em>C. albicans</em> cell surface configuration that enhances gut occupation.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Masters of Science (MS)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis (MS)

Year dc:date.available

2025

Authors dc:creator

• Shubaita, Musfirat
• <h2>0009-0005-6826-6459</h2>

Contributors dc:contributor

• J. Christian Perez, Ph.D.
• Anne Marie Krachler, Ph.D.
• Michael C. Lorenz, Ph.D.

• Candida albicans
• long-chain fatty acids
• cell surface
• gut colonization
• anaerobic
• fungal pathogen
• Microbial Physiology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/utgsbs_dissertations/1480

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu:utgsbs_dissertations-2533