Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38849761›Full record

ArticleBMC microbiology2024

Mechanism and bioinformatics analysis of the effect of berberine-enhanced fluconazole against drug-resistant Candida albicans.

Sitong Wu, Wei Jia, Yu Lu, Hongkun Jiang, Chunlan Huang, Shifu Tang, Le Du

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC microbiology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Innovative antifungal strategies to combat drug-resistantFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025
    Review
  7. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Sitong WuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China.
Wei JiaNingxia Key Laboratory of Clinical and Pathogenic Microbiology, The General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, 750004, Ningxia, China.
Yu LuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China.
Hongkun JiangDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China.
Chunlan HuangDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China.
Shifu TangDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China.
Le DuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Viral Diseases, Guangxi Health Commission Key Laboratory of Clinical Biotechnology, Liuzhou People's Hospital, Liu Zhou, 545006, China. nihaodl6@outlook.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Biofilms produced by Candida albicans present a challenge in treatment with antifungal drug. Enhancing the sensitivity to fluconazole (FLC) is a reasonable method for treating FLC-resistant species. Moreover, several lines of evidence have demonstrated that berberine (BBR) can have antimicrobial effects. The aim of this study was to clarify the underlying mechanism of these effects. We conducted a comparative study of the inhibition of FLC-resistant strain growth by FLC treatment alone, BBR treatment alone, and the synergistic effect of combined FLC and BBR treatment. Twenty-four isolated strains showed distinct biofilm formation capabilities. The antifungal effect of combined FLC and BBR treatment in terms of the growth and biofilm formation of Candida albicans species was determined via checkerboard, time-kill, and fluorescence microscopy assays. The synergistic effect of BBR and FLC downregulated the expression of the efflux pump genes CDR1 and MDR, the hyphal gene HWP1, and the adhesion gene ALS3; however, the gene expression of the transcriptional repressor TUP1 was upregulated following treatment with this drug combination. Furthermore, the addition of BBR led to a marked reduction in cell surface hydrophobicity. To identify resistance-related genes and virulence factors through genome-wide sequencing analysis, we investigated the inhibition of related resistance gene expression by the combination of BBR and FLC, as well as the associated signaling pathways and metabolic pathways. The KEGG metabolic map showed that the metabolic genes in this strain are mainly involved in amino acid and carbon metabolism. The metabolic pathway map showed that several ergosterol (ERG) genes were involved in the synthesis of cell membrane sterols, which may be related to drug resistance. In this study, BBR + FLC combination treatment upregulated the expression of the ERG1, ERG3, ERG4, ERG5, ERG24, and ERG25 genes and downregulated the expression of the ERG6 and ERG9 genes compared with fluconazole treatment alone (p < 0.05).

Indexed as

Antifungal AgentsBerberineBiofilmsCandida albicansComputational BiologyDrug Resistance, FungalFluconazoleMicrobial Sensitivity TestsDrug SynergismFungal ProteinsGene Expression Regulation, FungalAntifungal AgentsBerberineFluconazoleFungal ProteinsBerberineBiofilmCandida albicansErgosterolFluconazole

Identifiers

PMID38849761
PMCPMC11157861

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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.