Deadly fungus uses unexpected system to control its virulence
Monday, June 6, 2016 - 07:01
in Health & Medicine
A research team led by UC San Francisco scientists has discovered a cellular signaling system that regulates the virulence of Cryptococcus neoformans, a fungus that has been estimated to cause nearly a million cases of meningitis worldwide per year, about 625,000 of which are fatal. C. neoformans infections are a particular threat to individuals whose immune systems are compromised—meningitis caused by this fungus is responsible for as much as 40 percent of all deaths related to HIV/AIDS.