2025 Hyper Recent •CC0 1.0 Universal

This work is dedicated to the public domain. No rights reserved.

Access Preprint From Server
June 5th, 2025
Version: 2
West Chester University of Pennsylvania
microbiology
biorxiv

Novel infection by Mucor hiemalis kills Caenorhabditis hosts through intestinal perforation

Ni, J.Open in Google Scholar•Sowa, J. N.Open in Google Scholar

The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has emerged as a popular model system to investigate cell biology and host-pathogen interactions. Presently, C. elegans is studied as a natural host of intracellular pathogens such as microsporidia and Orsay virus along with extracellular bacterial and fungal pathogens. The use of C. elegans as a model in host-pathogen research is limited by the number of naturally occurring pathogens to the organism. Through a sampling project to identify new pathogens of C. elegans, we identified the fungus Mucor hiemalis as a pathogen of Caenorhabditis species. We observed the fungus in the intestinal lumen of wild-caught Caenorhabditis briggsae, and co-culturing the wild-caught species with infection reporter C. elegans confirmed infection by M. hiemalis. This study characterizes the fungal infection by M. hiemalis in Caenorhabditis nematodes. Fluorescence microscopy with fungal staining revealed the life cycle of M. hiemalis within multiple Caenorhabditis species at varying growth stages. We observed the killing of nematodes by M. hiemalis via intestinal perforation and assessed its host range through a series of lifespan assays. We investigated the food preference of C. elegans and determined that nematodes show a preference towards food that contains M. hiemalis spores. Lastly, we evaluated common C. elegans transcriptional immune responses and found that M. hiemalis does not induce genes associated with the intracellular pathogen response or other responses seen with previously studied bacterial and fungal pathogens. Characterization of this fungal infection in Caenorhabditis nematodes will provide new insights into the biology of pathogenic fungi and host immune responses.

Similar Papers

biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Bacterial metabolic signatures in MASLD predicted through gene-centric studies in stool metagenomes
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a multifactorial condition influenced by the gut microbiome (GM). While previous studies have reported inconsistent associations between MASLD and key microbial clades using low-resolution 16S rRNA profiling, we employed high-resolution metagenomic sequencing and multi-marker taxonomic classification across three independent cohor...
Medina, J. M.
•
Iruzubieta, P.
•
Fernandez-Lopez, R.
•
Crespo, J.
•
de la Cruz, F.
biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Isolation of a nanobody specific to the PstS-1 protein and evaluation of its immunoreactivity with structural components of Mycobacterium tuberculosis granuloma
M. tuberculosis (Mtb) causes infectious granulomatous disease tuberculosis (TB). Within TB granuloma, foci of Mtb secreted antigens anchored on the surface of either bacilli or host cells may serve as targetable biomarkers for antibody based molecular imaging of TB. Nanobody is better suited over conventional antibody or its fragment derivatives for molecular imaging due to its quick localization ...
Dhekale, Y. P.
•
Jothivel, K.
•
Ghorui, S. K.
•
Gupta, G. D.
...•
Gupta, P. K.
biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Ultra-high field strength electroporation enables efficient DNA transformation and genome editing in nontuberculous mycobacteria
Efficient DNA delivery is essential for genetic manipulation of mycobacteria and for dissecting their physiology, pathogenesis, and drug resistance. Although electroporation enables transformation efficiencies exceeding 105 CFU per {micro}g DNA in Mycobacterium smegmatis and Mycobacterium tuberculosis, it remains highly inefficient in many non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), including Mycobacteriu...
Tang, D.
•
Wang, M.-G.
•
Wang, D.
•
Yang, D.
...•
Wang, Q.
biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Phage intervention improves colitis and response to corticosteroids by attenuating virulence of Crohn's disease-associated bacteria
Adherent-invasive Escherichia coli (AIEC) exhibit proinflammatory properties and have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Crohns disease (CD), a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Antibiotic use in CD lacks specificity and may worsen microbiome disruption, prompting interest in bacteriophages (phages) for targeted microbiome editing. Here, we identified HER259, a phage active against the...
Jackson, K.
•
Galipeau, H.
•
Hann, A.
•
Constante, M.
...•
Verdu, E. F.
biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Unipolar polysaccharide-mediated attachment of the N2O-reducing bacterium Bradyrhizobium ottawaense SG09 to plant roots.
Agricultural soils are an important source of nitrous oxide (N2O), which has greenhouse and ozone-depleting effects. Bradyrhizobium ottawaense SG09 is a nitrogen-fixing rhizobium with high N2O-reducing activity. Rhizobia form symbiotic nodules in leguminous plants. The initial physical attachment of bacteria to plant roots is a critical step in the establishment of symbiotic interactions. In this ...
Takeguchi, Y.
•
Shibuya, R.
•
Kondo, M.
•
Betsuyaku, E.
...•
Betsuyaku, S.
biorxiv
Fri Jun 06 2025
Establishment of an antimetabolite-based transformation system for the wood-decaying basidiomycete Phanerochaete chrysosporium
The model wood-decaying basidiomycete Phanerochaete chrysosporium has been extensively studied to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of wood decomposition. However, genetic studies have been limited by the lack of adequate genetic tools. Here, we established an antimetabolite-based transformation system, originally developed for ascomycetes, for use in P. chrysosporium. The transformation system u...
Masumoto, K.
•
Banko, P.
•
Yamamoto, A.
•
Miwa, K.
•
Hori, C.
biorxiv
Thu Jun 05 2025
IL-6 Evades KSHV-Mediated Hyperadenylation repression via CRM1-Dependent Nuclear Export.
RNA turnover is critical for regulating cellular homeostasis, with nuclear export representing a key step in mRNA fate. During infection by Kaposi Sarcoma-associated Herpesvirus (KSHV), widespread mRNA decay is mediated by the viral endonuclease SOX, which depletes cytoplasmic transcripts and induces secondary nuclear RNA processing defects. One such defect includes transcript hyperadenylation, wh...
Schultz, S.
•
Miles, J.
•
Dwyer, W.
•
MacVeigh-Fierro, D.
•
Muller, M.
biorxiv
Thu Jun 05 2025
Early Candida - Oral Tumor Interactions Suggest miRNA-Mediated Regulation of Inflammatory and Tumor-associated processes
When simultaneously present, oral cancer and oral candidiasis are associated with high mortality. Recently, fungi-driven OSCC has emerged as a recognized phenomenon, that is triggered by Candida and sustained by several pro-tumor mechanisms. This study aimed to deepen our understanding and investigate how these mechanisms are regulated at the early stages of fungi-tumor interactions. Post-transcri...
Toth, R.
•
Horvath, M.
•
Naglik, J. R.
•
Gacser, A.
biorxiv
Thu Jun 05 2025
Evaluation of Enterobacterales carrying Acinetobacter-associated blaOXA genes--United States, 2017-2022
Through their ability to hydrolyze carbapenems, Ambler class D beta-lactamases endanger patients by limiting the clinical efficacy of beta-lactam antimicrobials. Further, plasmid-mediated transmission can increase mobility of carbapenemase genes between bacteria and facilitate their spread between patients. In the United States and elsewhere, the plasmid-mediated Ambler class D carbapenemase genes...
Orazi, G.
•
Kent, A. G.
•
Wilmott, N.
•
Berhe, D.
...•
Sabour, S.