Construction and analysis of the cDNA subtraction library of yeast and mycelial phases of Sporothrix globosa isolated in China: identification of differentially expressed genes

Abstract

Species included in the Sporothrix schenckii complex are temperature-dependent with dimorphic growth and cause sporotrichosis that is characterized by chronic and fatal lymphocutaneous lesions. The putative species included in the Sporothrix complex are S. brasiliensis, S. globosa, S. mexicana, S. pallida, S. schenckii, and S. lurei. S. globosa is the causal agent of sporotrichosis in China, and its pathogenicity appears to be closely related to the dimorphic transition, i.e. from the mycelial to the yeast phase, it adapts to changing environmental conditions. To determine the molecular mechanisms of the switching process that mediates the dimorphic transition of S. globosa, suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) was used to prepare a complementary DNA (cDNA) subtraction library from the yeast and mycelial phases. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to profile the relationship between differently expressed genes and the dimorphic transition. Two genes that were expressed at higher levels by the yeast form were selected, and their differential expression levels were verified using a quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). It is believed that these differently expressed genes are involved in the pathogenesis of S. globosa infection in China.