Final Activity Report Summary - NICRYPTO (Nickel homeostasis in the human pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans)
We are interested in understanding how C. neoformans acquires nickel and how it becomes incorporated into the urease enzyme. The objective of this work has been to identify proteins that are involved in nickel metabolism in C. neoformans and determine if and how they are regulated. We have identified a transporter that is involved in the uptake of nickel and a protein that is potentially involved in the insertion of nickel into urease. Mutants that lack either of these proteins do not exhibit urease activity suggesting that the disruption of nickel acquisition and distribution in C. neoformans will inhibit its ability to cause disease.