Sugar-induced cell death is temperature dependent and conserved in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida species

Abstract

Since the discovery of the yeast metacaspase, YCA1 , research on cell death and aging in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has expanded significantly. Increasing evidence demonstrates similarities between yeast and mammalian cell death. A less discussed type of cell death is sugar-induced cell death (SICD). SICD is a phenomenon observed in S. cerevisiae , whereby cells transferred to water-only remain viable for many days; however, when transferred to glucose-only solutions, there is a rapid loss of viability. Studies on SICD in yeast have been focusing mostly on S. cerevisiae . In this study, we expand the systematic characterization of SICD in Saccharomyces to pathogenic Candida spp. The extension of SICD in pathogenic yeast raises the possibility of this mechanism being of potential interest in therapeutic development.