ArticlePLoS pathogens2013
Brain inositol is a novel stimulator for promoting Cryptococcus penetration of the blood-brain barrier.
Article in PLoS pathogens, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 53 papers.
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Who cites it
53 citing papers in PubMed, 88 citations in OpenAlex.
- Primary Cryptococcal Cellulitis With High Antigenemia in an Immunocompromised Host: A Case Report and Laboratory Investigation of the CausativeOpen forum infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Microglia sense fungal infections through capsular components from capillary-bound Cryptococcus neoformans via endothelial nucleotide signaling.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- An integrative ultrastructural and transcriptomic analysis of host-pathogen interactions with human brain microvascular endothelial cells during cryptococcal infection: a preliminary study.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2026Article
- The Pain Is in the Brain With the Sugar-Coated Killer.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2025Review
- Reconsidering the blood-brain barrier: histopathology and microanatomy of cryptococcal CNS infection.Microbiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2025Review
- Article
- Celebrating the fifth edition of the International Symposium on Fungal Stress - ISFUS, a decade after its 2014 debut.Fungal biology · 2025Article
- Cryptococcal nutrient acquisition and pathogenesis: dining on the host.Microbiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2025Review
- The emergence of neuroinvasiveFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025Article
- Research progress on immunometabolism and gut microbiota in cryptococcal meningitis: mechanisms and therapeutic implications.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2025Review
- Elements of dissemination in cryptococcosis.mBio · 2024Review
- Mechanisms and Virulence Factors ofJournal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- The pathways and the mechanisms by whichMycology · 2024Review
- Macropinocytosis as a potential mechanism driving neurotropism ofFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2023Review
- The Dynamics ofCells · 2022Article
- A dissemination-prone morphotype enhances extrapulmonary organ entry by Cryptococcus neoformans.Cell host & microbe · 2022Article
- Review
- Review
- Antiamoebic Properties of Laboratory and Clinically Used Drugs against Naegleria fowleri and Balamuthia mandrillarisAntibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Cryptococcus neoformans is the most common cause of fungal meningitis, with high mortality and morbidity. The reason for the frequent occurrence of Cryptococcus infection in the central nervous system (CNS) is poorly understood. The facts that human and animal brains contain abundant inositol and that Cryptococcus has a sophisticated system for the acquisition of inositol from the environment suggests that host inositol utilization may contribute to the development of cryptococcal meningitis. In this study, we found that inositol plays an important role in Cryptococcus traversal across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) both in an in vitro human BBB model and in in vivo animal models. The capacity of inositol to stimulate BBB crossing was dependent upon fungal inositol transporters, indicated by a 70% reduction in transmigration efficiency in mutant strains lacking two major inositol transporters, Itr1a and Itr3c. Upregulation of genes involved in the inositol catabolic pathway was evident in a microarray analysis following inositol treatment. In addition, inositol increased the production of hyaluronic acid in Cryptococcus cells, which is a ligand known to binding host CD44 receptor for their invasion. These studies suggest an inositol-dependent Cryptococcus traversal of the BBB, and support our hypothesis that utilization of host-derived inositol by Cryptococcus contributes to CNS infection.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.