{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T14:27:28Z","timestamp":1785421648199,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"American Society for Microbiology","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,3]],"date-time":"2026-03-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1772496000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,3]],"date-time":"2026-03-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1772496000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/non-commercial-tdm-license"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Research Foundation of South Africa","award":["115566"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["115566"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.asm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Microbiol Spectr"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,3]]},"abstract":"ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n \n \n \n Lipids have recently gained attention for their involvement in the virulence of pathogenic yeast. One group of lipids, prostaglandins, which are arachidonic acid-derived eicosanoids, has received particular attention. Prostaglandin E\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n (PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n ) is the most studied prostaglandin in mammals. However, pathogenic yeast, including\n Candida albicans<\/jats:italic>\n ,\n Candida tropicalis<\/jats:italic>\n ,\n Candida glabrata<\/jats:italic>\n ,\n Candida parapsilosis<\/jats:italic>\n , and\n Candida dubliniensis<\/jats:italic>\n , also produces PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n . Notably, PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n production has not yet been reported in\n Candidozyma auris<\/jats:italic>\n (\n Candida auris<\/jats:italic>\n ). In\n C. albicans<\/jats:italic>\n , PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n plays a crucial role in colonization and virulence by promoting yeast-to-hyphal transition, enhancing biofilm formation and colonization of the gastrointestinal tract. Although the biochemical pathway responsible for PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n synthesis in yeasts is unknown, several genes have been implicated, including\n OLE2<\/jats:italic>\n and\n POX1-3<\/jats:italic>\n , which were investigated in this study. Deletion mutants of these genes were generated using a CRISPR-Cas9 system, and the production of PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n by the mutants was quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and confirmed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Furthermore, the involvement of these genes in virulence was assessed using a survival assay in\n Caenorhabditis elegans<\/jats:italic>\n . This study presents the first report of PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n production by\n C. auris<\/jats:italic>\n , and it demonstrates that\n OLE2<\/jats:italic>\n and\n POX1-3<\/jats:italic>\n play significant roles in PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n production and virulence of this yeast in\n C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n . Additionally, deletion of\n OLE2<\/jats:italic>\n in\n C. auris<\/jats:italic>\n led to an accumulation of monounsaturated fatty acids, providing evidence that\n OLE2<\/jats:italic>\n does not encode a \u03949 desaturase. The conserved nature of the PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n production and virulence requirements among different pathogenic yeasts indicates the potential for broad-spectrum drug targeting.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n IMPORTANCE<\/jats:title>\n \n This study reveals, for the first time, that\n Candidozyma<\/jats:italic>\n (\n Candida auris<\/jats:italic>\n )\u2014a growing global health threat, often causing outbreaks in hospitals\u2014can produce a prostaglandin E\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n (PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n ), which is known to influence how the immune system responds and has been linked to increased virulence in other yeast species. By identifying specific genes (\n OLE2<\/jats:italic>\n and\n POX1-3<\/jats:italic>\n ) involved in PGE\n 2<\/jats:sub>\n production and virulence, potential novel drug targets have been identified. Understanding how\n C. auris<\/jats:italic>\n produces PGE2 and how this contributes to its ability to infect and survive in hosts could lead to innovative therapies that block these pathways, making infections easier to treat.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1128\/spectrum.02323-25","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,28]],"date-time":"2026-01-28T14:00:14Z","timestamp":1769608814000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/asmj-crossmark-policy-page","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The role of\n OLE2<\/i>\n and\n POX1-3<\/i>\n in prostaglandin E\n 2<\/sub>\n production and virulence is conserved in\n Candidozyma<\/i>\n (\n Candida<\/i>\n )\n auris<\/i>"],"prefix":"10.1128","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Armand","family":"Bolsenbroek","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eduvan","family":"Bisschoff","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gabre","family":"Kemp","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Olihile","family":"Sebolai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6928-5663","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Carolina","family":"Pohl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4334-5925","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jacobus","family":"Albertyn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/009xwd568","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry, University of the Free State","place":["Bloemfontein, South Africa"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"235","reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_3_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1042\/EBC20190082"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/jof7040254"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.isci.2022.105870"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/intimm\/dxq442"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.immuni.2012.02.013"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4049\/jimmunol.1101029"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1189\/jlb.3A0415-158R"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pharmthera.2017.12.008"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1388-1981(00)00073-1"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_11_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1128\/IAI.69.5.2957-2963.2001"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_12_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1128\/IAI.00232-07"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_13_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1365-2958.2008.06245.x"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_14_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1128\/CMR.16.3.517-533.2003"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_15_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1099\/jmm.0.46172-0"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_16_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s00430-010-0169-7"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_17_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4161\/21505594.2014.988097"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_18_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fcimb.2019.00359"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_19_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/mmy\/myab015"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_20_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1348-0421.2008.00083.x"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_21_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s13756-016-0132-5"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_22_2","volume-title":"WHO fungal priority pathogens list to guide research, development and public health action","author":"World Health Organization","year":"2022","unstructured":"World Health Organization. 2022. 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