Molecular architecture of Cryptococcus cell walls reveals species-specific chitosan-dependent remodeling - Nature
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AbstractCryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii are fungal pathogens that cause life-threatening infections, including cryptococcal meningitis. A distinctive feature of the cryptococcal cell wall is the extensive deacetylation of chitin to chitosan, a modification that is essential for virulence but whose structural role in cell-wall organization remains poorly understood. Here, we analyze the cell walls of wild-type strains of both species and their avirulent chitosan-deficient mutants, which serve as vaccine candidates. Loss of chitosan disrupted cell morphology and altered cell-wall ultrastructure, with more pronounced defects in C. neoformans. Solid-state NMR reveals that aggregated α-(1→3)-glucans form the principal rigid domain of the cell wall in both species and are closely associated with chitin microfibrils, whereas surrounding β-glucans and mannoproteins constitute a more dynamic matrix.
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