Open AccessInteraction between lactoferrin and ovotransferrin and Candida cells
Author(s) -
Valenti Piera,
Visca Paolo,
Antonini Giovanni,
Orsi Nicola
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.1986.tb01285.x
Subject(s) - lactoferrin , candida albicans , candida krusei , ovotransferrin , corpus albicans , microbiology and biotechnology , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , transferrin
The mechanism of antifungal activity of lactoferrin (Lf) and ovotransferrin (OTR) towards Candida albicans and Candida krusei was studied. In low iron‐content medium, in minimal medium supplemented by 2,2′‐dipyridyl, and in a medium in which Lf or OTR were separated from the culture by a dialysis membrane, the growth of C. albicans and C. krusei was proportional to the endogenous iron. Differences were observed when Lf or OTR was in contact with the fungal cells: C. albicans was inhibited, whereas C. krusei was not. Direct fluorescence indicated binding of Lf and OTR only on C. albicans surfaces, and suggested that antifungal activity is not simply related to iron deprivation, but involves interaction of the protein with the fungal surface.