Eleftherios Mylonakis

Exploiting Amoeboid and Non-Vertebrate Animal Model Systems to Study the Virulence of Human Pathogenic Fungi (2007)

Eleftherios Mylonakis, Arturo Casadevall, Frederick M. Ausubel

Experiments with insects, protozoa, nematodes, and slime molds have recently come to the forefront in the study of host–fungal interactions. Many of the virulence factors required for pathogenicity...

Antifungal Chemical Compounds Identified Using a C. elegans Pathogenicity Assay (2007)

Julia Breger, Beth Burgwyn Fuchs, George Aperis, Terence I. Moy, Frederick M. Ausubel, Eleftherios Mylonakis

There is an urgent need for the development of new antifungal agents. A facile in vivo model that evaluates libraries of chemical compounds could solve some of the main obstacles in current...

Characterization and regulation of the trehalose synthesis pathway and its importance in the pathogenicity of Cryptococcus neoformans (2006)

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Rude, Thomas, Toffaletti, Dena, Cox, Gary M, ...

The disaccharide trehalose has been found to play diverse roles, from energy source to stress protectant, and this sugar is found in organisms as diverse as bacteria, fungi, plants, and invertebrates...

A simple model host for identifying Gram-positive virulence factors

Garsin, Danielle A., Sifri, Costi D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Qin, Xiang, Singh, Kavindra V., Murray, Barbara E., ...

We demonstrate the use of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a facile and inexpensive model host for several Gram-positive human bacterial pathogens. Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus...

The Enterococcus faecalis fsrB Gene, a Key Component of the fsr Quorum-Sensing System, Is Associated with Virulence in the Rabbit Endophthalmitis Model

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Engelbert, Michael, Qin, Xiang, Sifri, Costi D., Murray, Barbara E., Ausubel, Frederick M., ...

We used a rabbit endophthalmitis model to explore the role of fsrB, a gene required for the function of the fsr quorum-sensing system of Enterococcus faecalis, in pathogenicity. A nonpolar deletion...

Virulence Effect of Enterococcus faecalis Protease Genes and the Quorum-Sensing Locus fsr in Caenorhabditis elegans and Mice

Sifri, Costi D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Singh, Kavindra V., Qin, Xiang, Garsin, Danielle A., Murray, Barbara E., ...

The expression of two Enterococcus faecalis extracellular virulence-related proteins, gelatinase (GelE) and serine protease (SprE), has been shown to be positively regulated by the fsr quorum-sensing...

Killing of Caenorhabditis elegans by Cryptococcus neoformans as a model of yeast pathogenesis

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Ausubel, Frederick M., Perfect, John R., Heitman, Joseph, Calderwood, Stephen B.

We found that the well-studied nematode Caenorhabditis elegans can use various yeasts, including Cryptococcus laurentii and Cryptococcus kuetzingii, as a sole source of food, producing similar brood...

Challenge of Drosophila melanogaster with Cryptococcus neoformans and Role of the Innate Immune Response

Apidianakis, Yiorgos, Rahme, Laurence G., Heitman, Joseph, Ausubel, Frederick M., Calderwood, Stephen B., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

We found that the ingestion of Cryptococcus neoformans by Drosophila melanogaster resulted in the death of the fly but that the ingestion of Saccharomyces cerevisiae or the nonpathogenic Cryptococcus...

Contribution of Gelatinase, Serine Protease, and fsr to the Pathogenesis of Enterococcus faecalis Endophthalmitis

Engelbert, Michael, Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Ausubel, Frederick M., Calderwood, Stephen B., Gilmore, Michael S.

Gelatinase and serine protease were found to contribute in concert to pathogenesis in a rabbit model of endophthalmitis. However, a mutant defective in the fsr regulator was observed to be more...

Disruption of the Aspergillus fumigatus Gene Encoding Nucleolar Protein CgrA Impairs Thermotolerant Growth and Reduces Virulence

Bhabhra, Ruchi, Miley, Michael D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Boettner, Doug, Fortwendel, Jarrod, Panepinto, John C., ...

Aspergillus fumigatus CgrA is the ortholog of a yeast nucleolar protein that functions in ribosome synthesis. To determine how CgrA contributes to the virulence of A. fumigatus, a ΔcgrA mutant was...

Cytotoxicity of Hydrogen Peroxide Produced by Enterococcus faecium

Moy, Terence I., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Calderwood, Stephen B., Ausubel, Frederick M.

Although the opportunistic bacterial pathogen Enterococcus faecium is a leading source of nosocomial infections, it appears to lack many of the overt virulence factors produced by other bacterial...

Cryptococcus neoformans α Strains Preferentially Disseminate to the Central Nervous System during Coinfection

Nielsen, Kirsten, Cox, Gary M., Litvintseva, Anastasia P., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Malliaris, Stephanie D., Benjamin, Daniel K., ...

Cryptococcus neoformans is a fungal pathogen that has evolved over the past 40 million years into three distinct varieties or sibling species (gattii, grubii, and neoformans). Each variety manifests...

Cryptococcus neoformans Gene Involved in Mammalian Pathogenesis Identified by a Caenorhabditis elegans Progeny-Based Approach

Tang, Robin J., Breger, Julia, Idnurm, Alexander, Gerik, Kimberly J., Lodge, Jennifer K., Heitman, Joseph, ...

Caenorhabditis elegans can serve as a substitute host for the study of microbial pathogenesis. We found that mutations in genes of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans involved in mammalian...

Galleria mellonella as a Model System To Study Cryptococcus neoformans Pathogenesis

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Moreno, Roberto, El Khoury, Joseph B., Idnurm, Alexander, Heitman, Joseph, Calderwood, Stephen B., ...

Evaluation of Cryptococcus neoformans virulence in a number of nonmammalian hosts suggests that C. neoformans is a nonspecific pathogen. We used the killing of Galleria mellonella (the greater wax...

A simple model host for identifying Gram-positive virulence factors

Garsin, Danielle A., Sifri, Costi D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Qin, Xiang, Singh, Kavindra V., Murray, Barbara E., ...

We demonstrate the use of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a facile and inexpensive model host for several Gram-positive human bacterial pathogens. Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus...

The Enterococcus faecalis fsrB Gene, a Key Component of the fsr Quorum-Sensing System, Is Associated with Virulence in the Rabbit Endophthalmitis Model

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Engelbert, Michael, Qin, Xiang, Sifri, Costi D., Murray, Barbara E., Ausubel, Frederick M., ...

We used a rabbit endophthalmitis model to explore the role of fsrB, a gene required for the function of the fsr quorum-sensing system of Enterococcus faecalis, in pathogenicity. A nonpolar deletion...

Virulence Effect of Enterococcus faecalis Protease Genes and the Quorum-Sensing Locus fsr in Caenorhabditis elegans and Mice

Sifri, Costi D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Singh, Kavindra V., Qin, Xiang, Garsin, Danielle A., Murray, Barbara E., ...

The expression of two Enterococcus faecalis extracellular virulence-related proteins, gelatinase (GelE) and serine protease (SprE), has been shown to be positively regulated by the fsr quorum-sensing...

Killing of Caenorhabditis elegans by Cryptococcus neoformans as a model of yeast pathogenesis

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Ausubel, Frederick M., Perfect, John R., Heitman, Joseph, Calderwood, Stephen B.

We found that the well-studied nematode Caenorhabditis elegans can use various yeasts, including Cryptococcus laurentii and Cryptococcus kuetzingii, as a sole source of food, producing similar brood...

Challenge of Drosophila melanogaster with Cryptococcus neoformans and Role of the Innate Immune Response

Apidianakis, Yiorgos, Rahme, Laurence G., Heitman, Joseph, Ausubel, Frederick M., Calderwood, Stephen B., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

We found that the ingestion of Cryptococcus neoformans by Drosophila melanogaster resulted in the death of the fly but that the ingestion of Saccharomyces cerevisiae or the nonpathogenic Cryptococcus...

Contribution of Gelatinase, Serine Protease, and fsr to the Pathogenesis of Enterococcus faecalis Endophthalmitis

Engelbert, Michael, Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Ausubel, Frederick M., Calderwood, Stephen B., Gilmore, Michael S.

Gelatinase and serine protease were found to contribute in concert to pathogenesis in a rabbit model of endophthalmitis. However, a mutant defective in the fsr regulator was observed to be more...

Disruption of the Aspergillus fumigatus Gene Encoding Nucleolar Protein CgrA Impairs Thermotolerant Growth and Reduces Virulence

Bhabhra, Ruchi, Miley, Michael D., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Boettner, Doug, Fortwendel, Jarrod, Panepinto, John C., ...

Aspergillus fumigatus CgrA is the ortholog of a yeast nucleolar protein that functions in ribosome synthesis. To determine how CgrA contributes to the virulence of A. fumigatus, a ΔcgrA mutant was...

Cytotoxicity of Hydrogen Peroxide Produced by Enterococcus faecium

Moy, Terence I., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Calderwood, Stephen B., Ausubel, Frederick M.

Although the opportunistic bacterial pathogen Enterococcus faecium is a leading source of nosocomial infections, it appears to lack many of the overt virulence factors produced by other bacterial...

Galleria mellonella as a Model System To Study Cryptococcus neoformans Pathogenesis

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Moreno, Roberto, El Khoury, Joseph B., Idnurm, Alexander, Heitman, Joseph, Calderwood, Stephen B., ...

Evaluation of Cryptococcus neoformans virulence in a number of nonmammalian hosts suggests that C. neoformans is a nonspecific pathogen. We used the killing of Galleria mellonella (the greater wax...

Cryptococcus neoformans α Strains Preferentially Disseminate to the Central Nervous System during Coinfection

Nielsen, Kirsten, Cox, Gary M., Litvintseva, Anastasia P., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Malliaris, Stephanie D., Benjamin, Daniel K., ...

Cryptococcus neoformans is a fungal pathogen that has evolved over the past 40 million years into three distinct varieties or sibling species (gattii, grubii, and neoformans). Each variety manifests...

Cryptococcus neoformans Gene Involved in Mammalian Pathogenesis Identified by a Caenorhabditis elegans Progeny-Based Approach

Tang, Robin J., Breger, Julia, Idnurm, Alexander, Gerik, Kimberly J., Lodge, Jennifer K., Heitman, Joseph, ...

Caenorhabditis elegans can serve as a substitute host for the study of microbial pathogenesis. We found that mutations in genes of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans involved in mammalian...

Characterization and Regulation of the Trehalose Synthesis Pathway and Its Importance in the Pathogenicity of Cryptococcus neoformans

Petzold, Elizabeth Wills, Himmelreich, Uwe, Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Rude, Thomas, Toffaletti, Dena, Cox, Gary M., ...

The disaccharide trehalose has been found to play diverse roles, from energy source to stress protectant, and this sugar is found in organisms as diverse as bacteria, fungi, plants, and invertebrates...

Antifungal Chemical Compounds Identified Using a C. elegans Pathogenicity Assay

Breger, Julia, Fuchs, Beth Burgwyn, Aperis, George, Moy, Terence I, Ausubel, Frederick M, Mylonakis, Eleftherios

There is an urgent need for the development of new antifungal agents. A facile in vivo model that evaluates libraries of chemical compounds could solve some of the main obstacles in current...

The Temperature-Sensitive Role of Cryptococcus neoformans ROM2 in Cell Morphogenesis

Fuchs, Beth Burgwyn, Tang, Robin J., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

ROM2 is associated with Cryptococcus neoformans virulence. We examined additional roles of ROM2 in C. neoformans and found that ROM2 plays a role in several cell functions specifically at high...

Exploiting Amoeboid and Non-Vertebrate Animal Model Systems to Study the Virulence of Human Pathogenic Fungi

Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Casadevall, Arturo, Ausubel, Frederick M

Experiments with insects, protozoa, nematodes, and slime molds have recently come to the forefront in the study of host–fungal interactions. Many of the virulence factors required for pathogenicity...

Eca1, a Sarcoplasmic/Endoplasmic Reticulum Ca2+-ATPase, Is Involved in Stress Tolerance and Virulence in Cryptococcus neoformans▿

Fan, Weihua, Idnurm, Alexander, Breger, Julia, Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Heitman, Joseph

The basidiomycetous fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans is adapted to survive challenges in the soil and environment and within the unique setting of the mammalian host. A C. neoformans mutant...

Susceptibility of Cryptococcus neoformans to Photodynamic Inactivation Is Associated with Cell Wall Integrity▿

Fuchs, Beth Burgwyn, Tegos, George P., Hamblin, Michael R., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

Photodynamic therapy is a rapidly developing antimicrobial technology which combines a nontoxic photoactivatable dye or photosensitizer with harmless visible light of the correct wavelength to excite...

Prokaryote–eukaryote interactions identified by using Caenorhabditis elegans

Peleg, Anton Y., Tampakakis, Emmanouil, Fuchs, Beth Burgwyn, Eliopoulos, George M., Moellering, Robert C., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

Prokaryote–eukaryote interactions are ubiquitous and have important medical and environmental significance. Despite this, a paucity of data exists on the mechanisms and pathogenic consequences of...

Efflux in Fungi: La Pièce de Résistance

Coleman, Jeffrey J., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

Pathogens must be able to overcome both host defenses and antimicrobial treatment in order to successfully infect and maintain colonization of the host. One way fungi accomplish this feat and...

Effect of prophylactic lamivudine for chemotherapy-associated hepatitis B reactivation in lymphoma: a meta-analysis of published clinical trials and a decision tree addressing prolonged prophylaxis and maintenance

Ziakas, Panayiotis D., Karsaliakos, Petros, Mylonakis, Eleftherios

Previous observations indicate that a lamividune-prophylaxis strategy results in a decrease of hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation rates. This report evaluates the benefits from this strategy among...

Harnessing Hsp90 function as a powerful, broadly effective therapeutic strategy for fungal infectious disease

Cowen, Leah E., Singh, Sheena D., Köhler, Julia R., Collins, Cathy, Zaas, Aimee K., Schell, Wiley A., ...

Invasive fungal infections are a leading cause of mortality among immunocompromised individuals. Treatment is notoriously difficult with the limited armamentarium of antifungal drugs, whose efficacy...

Identification of Antifungal Compounds Active against Candida albicans Using an Improved High-Throughput Caenorhabditis elegans Assay

Okoli, Ikechukwu, Coleman, Jeffrey J., Tempakakis, Emmanouil, An, W. Frank, Holson, Edward, Wagner, Florence, ...

Candida albicans, the most common human pathogenic fungus, can establish a persistent lethal infection in the intestine of the microscopic nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. The C. elegans–C....

Evolutionarily conserved recognition and innate immunity to fungal pathogens by the scavenger receptors SCARF1 and CD36

Means, Terry K., Mylonakis, Eleftherios, Tampakakis, Emmanouil, Colvin, Richard A., Seung, Edward, Puckett, Lindsay, ...

Receptors involved in innate immunity to fungal pathogens have not been fully elucidated. We show that the Caenorhabditis elegans receptors CED-1 and C03F11.3, and their mammalian orthologues, the...

Interaction of Candida albicans with an Intestinal Pathogen, Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium▿

Tampakakis, Emmanouil, Peleg, Anton Y., Mylonakis, Eleftherios

Candida albicans is an opportunistic human fungal pathogen that normally resides in the gastrointestinal tract and on the skin as a commensal but can cause life-threatening invasive disease....