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Review
. 2008 Apr-May;165(4-5):331-9.
doi: 10.1007/s11046-007-9061-4.

Melanin as a virulence factor of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis and other dimorphic pathogenic fungi: a minireview

Carlos P Taborda  1 , Marcelo B da Silva, Joshua D Nosanchuk, Luiz R Travassos
Affiliations
Review

Melanin as a virulence factor of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis and other dimorphic pathogenic fungi: a minireview

Carlos P Taborda et al. Mycopathologia. 2008 Apr-May.

Abstract

Melanin pigments are substances produced by a broad variety of pathogenic microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and helminths. Microbes predominantly produce melanin pigment via tyrosinases, laccases, catecholases, and the polyketide synthase pathway. In fungi, melanin is deposited in the cell wall and cytoplasm, and melanin particles ("ghosts") can be isolated from these fungi that have the same size and shape of the original cells. Melanin has been reported in several human pathogenic dimorphic fungi including Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, Sporothrix schenckii, Histoplasma capsulatum, Blastomyces dermatitidis, and Coccidioides posadasii. Melanization appears to contribute to virulence by reducing the susceptibility of melanized fungi to host defense mechanisms and antifungal drugs.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Light microscopy of P. brasiliensis yeast cells grown in liquid medium without (A) and with (B) l-DOPA. Original magnification 100×
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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