Pathogenomic Signaling Networks and Antifungal Drug Development for Human Fungal Pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans

摘要

Past decade systemic mycoses caused by opportunistic human fungal pathogens, including Candida, Aspergillus, and Cryptococcus, have been a growing problem for both immunocompromised and immunocompetent individuals. Particularly, Cryptococcus neoformans has recently emerged as a major fungal pathogen, which can cause fungal pneumonia and meningitis that are lethal if not timely medicated. However, treatment for cryptococcosis has been difficult due to a lack of proper anti-cryptococcal drugs with fungicidal activity and less toxicity. In this review we introduced novel therapeutic methods for treating cryptococcosis by exploring pathogenomic signaling networks of C. neoformans with genome-wide transcriptome approaches as well as diverse molecular/genetic tools.