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Saline stress affects the pH-dependent regulation of the transcription factor PacC in the dermatophyte Trichophyton interdigitale

  • Bacterial Fungal and Virus Molecular Biology - Short Communication
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Abstract

Fungal growth and development depend on adaptation to the particular pH of their environment. Ambient pH sensing implies the activation of the pacC signaling pathway, which then acts as a critical regulator for different physiological conditions. The PacC transcription factor may also be associated with the control of salt stress tolerance. In a pH-dependent manner, salinity stress is surpassed by changes in gene expression and coordinated activation of other signaling pathways, thus permitting survival in the challenging environment. In this study, we assessed the regulatory role of Trichophyton interdigitale PacC in response to pH variation and salinity stress. By employing gene expression analysis, we evaluated the influence of PacC in the modulation of salt stress–related genes, including the transcription factors crz1, egr2, and the MAP kinase hog1 in the dermatophyte T. interdigitale. In our analysis, we also included the evaluation of a potassium/sodium efflux P-type ATPase aiming to identify the role of PacC on its ion pumping activity. Here we demonstrated that salinity stress and buffered pH conditions might affect the pacC gene modulation in the dermatophyte T. interdigitale.

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Acknowledgments

We thank V. M. de Oliveira, M. Mazucato, and M. D. Martins for technical assistance.

Funding

This study was funded by the Research Support Foundation of São Paulo State (FAPESP; Grant No. 14/03847-7, and Fellowship No. 10/15017-8 to LGS, 18/11319-1 to MPM, and 09/08411-4 to NTAP), National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Grant Nos. 305797/2017-4 and 304989/2017-7), Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES, Finance Code 001), and Foundation for Support to Teaching, Research, and Assistance (FAEPA/HCFMRP-USP).

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Author notes

  1. Larissa Gomes da Silva and Maíra Pompeu Martins contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Genetics, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, USP, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14049-900, Brazil

    Larissa Gomes da Silva, Maíra Pompeu Martins, Pablo Rodrigo Sanches, Nilce Maria Martinez-Rossi & Antonio Rossi

  2. Department of Microbiology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Nalu Teixeira de Aguiar Peres

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  1. Larissa Gomes da Silva
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  2. Maíra Pompeu Martins
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Correspondence to Nilce Maria Martinez-Rossi.

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da Silva, L.G., Martins, M.P., Sanches, P.R. et al. Saline stress affects the pH-dependent regulation of the transcription factor PacC in the dermatophyte Trichophyton interdigitale. Braz J Microbiol 51, 1585–1591 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-020-00313-1

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