ArticleEukaryotic cell2007
Cryptococcus neoformans mates on pigeon guano: implications for the realized ecological niche and globalization.
Article in Eukaryotic cell, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 96 papers.
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Who cites it
96 citing papers in PubMed.
- The Cryptococcus neoformans titanide is a pathogenic cell type that arises from typical yeast cells in response to host conditions.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Genomic hallmarks of parasexual reproduction in three hybrid groups of the human pathogenbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
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- Pulmonary cryptococcosis with or without immunocompromise: a retrospective comparative study of clinical and CT features and influential factors for lesion absorption.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Web-Based Dashboard for Tracking Cryptococcosis-Related Deaths in Brazil (2000-2022).Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2025Article
- "Pour some sugar on me"-Environmental Candida albicans isolates and the evolution of increased pathogenicity and antifungal resistance through sugar adaptation.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Article
- Decoding Cryptococcus: From African biodiversity to worldwide prevalence.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Current Approaches in Genome Assembly of Human Fungal Pathogens.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2025Article
- The emergence of neuroinvasiveFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025Article
- The buoyancy of cryptococcal cells and its implications for transport and persistence ofmSphere · 2024Article
- Elements of dissemination in cryptococcosis.mBio · 2024Review
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- A trade-off between proliferation and defense in the fungal pathogenbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Molecular characterization of clinical and environmental isolates from the Cryptococcus neoformans/C. Gattii species complexes of Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil.Brazilian journal of microbiology : [publication of the Brazilian Society for Microbiology] · 2024Article
- A case report of cryptococcosis in a captive Cape hyrax (Procavia capensis).The Journal of veterinary medical science · 2024Article
- A fungal protein organizes both glycogen and cell wall glucans.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2024Article
- Biogenesis, germination, and pathogenesis ofMicrobiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2024Review
- Invasive Fungal Infections and Oomycoses in Cats: 1. Diagnostic approach.Journal of feline medicine and surgery · 2024Review
- "Under Pressure" - How fungi evade, exploit, and modulate cells of the innate immune system.Seminars in immunology · 2023Review
36 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
The ecological niche that a species can occupy is determined by its resource requirements and the physical conditions necessary for survival. The niche to which an organism is most highly adapted is the realized niche, whereas the complete range of habitats that an organism can occupy represents the fundamental niche. The growth and development of Cryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii on pigeon guano were examined to determine whether these two species occupy the same or different ecological niches. C. neoformans is a cosmopolitan pathogenic yeast that infects predominantly immunocompromised individuals, exists in two varieties (grubii [serotype A] and neoformans [serotype D]), and is commonly isolated from pigeon guano worldwide. By contrast, C. gattii often infects immunocompetent individuals and is associated with geographically restricted environments, most notably, eucalyptus trees. Pigeon guano supported the growth of both species, and a brown pigment related to melanin, a key virulence factor, was produced. C. neoformans exhibited prolific mating on pigeon guano, whereas C. gattii did not. The observations that C. neoformans completes the life cycle on pigeon guano but that C. gattii does not indicates that pigeon guano could represent the realized ecological niche for C. neoformans. Because C. gattii grows on pigeon guano but cannot sexually reproduce, pigeon guano represents a fundamental but not a realized niche for C. gattii. Based on these studies, we hypothesize that an ancestral Cryptococcus strain gained the ability to sexually reproduce in pigeon guano and then swept the globe.
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