Fungal weapon turns against the maker

Candidalysin destroys host cells and activates immune response

| by Alena Gold

An international research team led by Bernhard Hube from the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology in Jena has solved another mystery of the yeast Candida albicans: They discovered that its fungal toxin Candidalysin boycotts its pathogenic effect by attracting immune cells. The scientists published their results in the journal Nature Communications.