Unité Biologie des ARN des Pathogènes Fongiques, Département de Mycologie, Institut Pasteur, Paris, 75015, France.
Groupe à 5 ans Immunologie des Infections Fongiques, Département de Mycologie, Institut Pasteur, Paris, 75015, France.
Genes Immun. 2019 May;20(5):403-414. doi: 10.1038/s41435-019-0071-2. Epub 2019 Apr 25.
Seminal work by Louis Pasteur revealed the contribution of fungi-yeasts and microsporidia to agroindustry and disease in animals, respectively. More than 150 years later, the impact of fungi on human health and beyond is an ever-increasing issue, although often underestimated. Recent studies estimate that fungal infections, especially those caused by Candida, Cryptococcus and Aspergillus species, kill more than one million people annually. Indeed, these neglected infections are in general very difficult to cure and the associated mortality remains very high even when antifungal treatments exist. The development of new antifungals and diagnostic tools that are both necessary to fight fungal diseases efficiently, requires greater insights in the biology of the fungal pathogens of humans in the context of the infection, on their epidemiology, and on their role in the human mycobiota. We also need a better understanding of the host immune responses to fungal pathogens as well as the genetic basis for the increased sensitivity of some individuals to fungal infections. Here, we highlight some recent progress made in these different areas of research, in particular based on work conducted in our own laboratories. These progress should lay the ground for better management of fungal infections, as they provide opportunities for better diagnostic, vaccination, the development of classical antifungals but also strategies for targeting virulence factors or the host.
路易斯·巴斯德（Louis Pasteur）的开创性工作揭示了真菌-酵母和微孢子虫分别对农业产业和动物疾病的贡献。150 多年后，真菌对人类健康和其他方面的影响是一个日益严重的问题，尽管往往被低估。最近的研究估计，真菌感染，特别是由念珠菌、隐球菌和曲霉属引起的感染，每年导致超过 100 万人死亡。事实上，这些被忽视的感染通常很难治愈，即使存在抗真菌治疗，相关死亡率仍然很高。为了有效地对抗真菌感染，需要开发新的抗真菌药物和诊断工具，这就需要深入了解人类真菌感染病原体的生物学特性、流行病学特征以及它们在人类真菌群落中的作用。我们还需要更好地了解宿主对真菌病原体的免疫反应，以及一些个体对真菌感染敏感性增加的遗传基础。在这里，我们强调了在这些不同研究领域取得的一些最新进展，特别是基于我们自己实验室的工作。这些进展应该为更好地管理真菌感染奠定基础，因为它们为更好的诊断、疫苗接种、经典抗真菌药物的开发以及针对毒力因子或宿主的策略提供了机会。
