Abstract:

Objective To investigate the reliability and stability of Caenorhabditis elegans-Candida albicans infection model in the application of antifungal drug evaluation,and to evaluate the value of this model in antifungal drug development.Method C.albicans was ingested by C.elegans and caused a persistent lethal infection to establish this infection model.Common antifungal drugs includingfuconazole,amphotericin B,caspofungin and 5-fluorocytosine,and farnesol,a quorum sensing molecule secreted by C.albicans,were used to treat the infected nematodes.The survival rate of the nematodes was observed to evaluate the activities of antifugal agents.Results C.albicans infected C.elegans,formed hyphae piercing the cuticle of the nematodes and resulted in the death of the nematodes.Fluconazole,caspofungin and 5-fluorocytosine inhibited the hyphal formation of C.albicans in different degrees in this in vivo model,improving the survival of C.elegans in a dose-dependent manner.Amphotericin B also showed antifungal effect in the C.elegans-C.albicans model,while at high concentrations as 16 or 32 μg/mL,the toxicity of amphotericin B was exhibited.Farnesol inhibited the hyphal formation of C.albicans,but showed weak protection effect to C.elegans.Conclusion The C.elegans-C.albicans infection model is reliable for antifungal drug evaluation.Moreover,this model has high-throughput,low-cost,time-saving properties,and is worthy to be widely used in antifungal drug development.

Key words: Caenorhabditis elegans, Candida albicans, infection model, antifungal drug