%0 Journal Article %A Hwang, Cheol-Sang %A Rhie, Gi-eun %A Oh, Jang-Hyun %A Huh, Won-Ki %A Yim, Hyung-Soon %A Kang, Sa-Ouk %T Copper- and zinc-containing superoxide dismutase (Cu/ZnSOD) is required for the protection of Candida albicans against oxidative stresses and the expression of its full virulence %D 2002 %J Microbiology, %V 148 %N 11 %P 3705-3713 %@ 1465-2080 %R https://doi.org/10.1099/00221287-148-11-3705 %K hyphal growth %K ROS, reactive oxygen species %K SOD, superoxide dismutase %K SOD1 %K candidiasis %K MnSOD, manganese-containing SOD %K Cu/ZnSOD, copper- and zinc-containing SOD %K lysine auxotrophy %K SGU, SG plus 25 μg uridine ml−1 %K FeSOD, iron-containing SOD %K SG, synthetic glucose %I Microbiology Society, %X Copper- and zinc-containing superoxide dismutase (Cu/ZnSOD) is suspected to be one of the anti-oxidant enzymes and virulence determinants active in some pathogenic micro-organisms. To elucidate the role of Cu/ZnSOD in the major human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, its gene, designated SOD1, was disrupted by the URA-blaster technique. The resulting sod1/sod1 mutant showed delayed hyphal growth on Spider medium but could still form hyphae on other solid media or in liquid media, particularly in response to serum. Moreover, the sod1/sod1 mutant was more sensitive to menadione, a redox-cycling agent, than the isogenic wild-type strain, although it still showed an adaptive oxidative stress response. Furthermore, the sod1/sod1 mutant cells exhibited slow growth in minimal medium when compared to the wild-type cells, but their growth was restored by the addition of lysine to the medium. Interestingly, C. albicans cells lacking Cu/ZnSOD showed increased susceptibility to macrophage attack and had attenuated virulence in mice. Thus, these results suggest that Cu/ZnSOD is required for the protection of C. albicans against oxidative stresses and for the full virulence of the organism to be expressed. %U https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-148-11-3705