%0 Journal Article
%T Peptides of the Constant Region of Antibodies Display Fungicidal Activity
%A Luciano Polonelli
%A Tecla Ciociola
%A Walter Magliani
%A Pier Paolo Zanello
%A Tiziana D'Adda
%A Serena Galati
%A Flavia De Bernardis
%A Silvia Arancia
%A Elena Gabrielli
%A Eva Pericolini
%A Anna Vecchiarelli
%A Denise C. Arruda
%A Marcia R. Pinto
%A Luiz R. Travassos
%A Thelma A. Pertinhez
%A Alberto Spisni
%A Stefania Conti
%J PLOS ONE
%D 2012
%I Public Library of Science (PLoS)
%R 10.1371/journal.pone.0034105
%X Synthetic peptides with sequences identical to fragments of the constant region of different classes (IgG, IgM, IgA) of antibodies (Fc-peptides) exerted a fungicidal activity in vitro against pathogenic yeasts, such as Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Cryptococcus neoformans, and Malassezia furfur, including caspofungin and triazole resistant strains. Alanine-substituted derivatives of fungicidal Fc-peptides, tested to evaluate the critical role of each residue, displayed unaltered, increased or decreased candidacidal activity in vitro. An Fc-peptide, included in all human IgGs, displayed a therapeutic effect against experimental mucosal and systemic candidiasis in mouse models. It is intriguing to hypothesize that some Fc-peptides may influence the antifungal immune response and constitute the basis for devising new antifungal agents.
%U http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0034105