Skip to main content

Tetracycline-Inducible Gene Expression in Candida albicans

  • Protocol
  • First Online:
Host-Fungus Interactions

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 845))

Abstract

In addition to gene inactivation, the manipulation of gene expression is another highly useful tool for the analysis of gene function. Several regulatable promoters are available that enable researchers to shut off or turn on the expression of a target gene in Candida albicans, usually by growing the cells in inducing or repressing media. In this chapter, we describe a tetracycline-inducible gene expression system (Tet-On) that allows forced expression of endogenous or heterologous genes in C. albicans by the addition of the small-molecule inducer doxycycline in a growth medium-independent manner. The system is based on a cassette in which a gene of interest can be placed under the control of a Tet-inducible promoter in a single cloning step and integrated into the C. albicans genome with the help of a dominant selection marker. As the cassette contains all necessary components for Tet-inducible gene expression, it can be used to study the effect of forced gene expression on the phenotype of C. albicans cells in any strain without a requirement of additional genetic manipulations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Protocol
USD 49.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 139.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 179.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Noble, S.M., Johnson, A.D. (2007) Genetics of Candida albicans, a diploid human fungal pathogen. Annu Rev Genet 41, 193–211.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Backen, A.C., Broadbent, I.D., Fetherston, R.W., Rosamond, J.D., Schnell, N.F., Stark, M.J. (2000) Evaluation of the CaMAL2 promoter for regulated expression of genes in Candida albicans. Yeast 16, 1121–1129.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Care, R.S., Trevethick, J., Binley, K.M., Sudbery, P.E. (1999) The MET3 promoter: a new tool for Candida albicans molecular genetics. Mol Microbiol 34, 792–798.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Leuker, C.E., Sonneborn, A., Delbrück, S., Ernst, J.F. (1997) Sequence and promoter regulation of the PCK1 gene encoding phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase of the fungal pathogen Candida albicans. Gene 192, 235–240.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Hillen, W., Berens, C. (1994) Mechanisms underlying expression of Tn10 encoded tetracycline resistance. Annu Rev Microbiol 48, 345–369.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Gossen, M., Bujard, H. (1992) Tight control of gene expression in mammalian cells by tetracycline-responsive promoters. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 89, 5547–5551.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Nakayama, H., Mio, T., Nagahashi, S., Kokado, M., Arisawa, M., Aoki, Y. (2000) Tetracycline-regulatable system to tightly control gene expression in the pathogenic fungus Candida albicans. Infect Immun 68, 6712–6719.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Roemer, T., Jiang, B., Davison, J., Ketela, T., Veillette, K., Breton, A., Tandia, F., Linteau, A., Sillaots, S., Marta, C., Martel, N., Veronneau, S., Lemieux, S., Kauffman, S., Becker, J., Storms, R., Boone, C., Bussey, H. (2003) Large-scale essential gene identification in Candida albicans and applications to antifungal drug discovery. Mol Microbiol 50, 167–181.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Saville, S.P., Lazzell, A.L., Monteagudo, C., Lopez-Ribot, J.L. (2003) Engineered control of cell morphology in vivo reveals distinct roles for yeast and filamentous forms of Candida albicans during infection. Eukaryot Cell 2, 1053–1060.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Urlinger, S., Baron, U., Thellmann, M., Hasan, M.T., Bujard, H., Hillen, W. (2000) Exploring the sequence space for tetracycline-dependent transcriptional activators: novel mutations yield expanded range and sensitivity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 97, 7963–7968.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Park, Y.-N., Morschhäuser, J. (2005) Tetracycline-inducible gene expression and gene deletion in Candida albicans. Eukaryot Cell 4, 1328–1342.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Huang, G., Yi, S., Sahni, N., Daniels, K.J., Srikantha, T., Soll, D.R. (2010) N-acetylglucosamine induces white to opaque switching, a mating prerequisite in Candida albicans. PLoS Pathog 6, e1000806.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Ramírez-Zavala, B., Reuß, O., Park, Y.N., Ohlsen, K., Morschhäuser, J. (2008) Environmental induction of white-opaque switching in Candida albicans. PLoS Pathog 4, e1000089.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Sahni, N., Yi, S., Daniels, K.J., Huang, G., Srikantha, T., Soll, D.R. (2010) Tec1 mediates the pheromone response of the white phenotype of Candida albicans: insights into the evolution of new signal transduction pathways. PLoS Biol 8, e1000363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Spiering, M.J., Moran, G.P., Chauvel, M., Maccallum, D.M., Higgins, J., Hokamp, K., Yeomans, T., d’Enfert, C., Coleman, D.C., Sullivan, D.J. (2010) Comparative transcript profiling of Candida albicans and Candida dubliniensis identifies SFL2, a C. albicans gene required for virulence in a reconstituted epithelial infection model. Eukaryot Cell 9, 251–265.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Srikantha, T., Borneman, A.R., Daniels, K.J., Pujol, C., Wu, W., Seringhaus, M.R., Gerstein, M., Yi, S., Snyder, M., Soll, D.R. (2006) TOS9 regulates white-opaque switching in Candida albicans. Eukaryot Cell 5, 1674–1687.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Staib, P., Lermann, U., Blaß-Warmuth, J., Degel, B., Würzner, R., Monod, M., Schirmeister, T., Morschhäuser, J. (2008) Tetracycline-inducible expression of individual secreted aspartic proteases in Candida albicans allows isoenzyme-specific inhibitor screening. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 52, 146–156.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgment

Work in our laboratory is supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joachim Morschhäuser .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this protocol

Cite this protocol

Weyler, M., Morschhäuser, J. (2012). Tetracycline-Inducible Gene Expression in Candida albicans . In: Brand, A., MacCallum, D. (eds) Host-Fungus Interactions. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 845. Humana, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-539-8_13

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-539-8_13

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Humana, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-61779-538-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-61779-539-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

Publish with us

Policies and ethics