IMPACT OF FUNGAL ADAPTATION UPON HOST RECOGNITION AND PATHOGENESIS
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Aberdeen
Department Name: Sch of Medicine, Medical Sci & Nutrition
Abstract
Fungal infections have a major impact on human health. Pathogenic (disease causing) fungi cause life-changing oral, genital and skin infections, and life-threatening systemic infections affecting internal organs. Most individuals carry the fungus Candida albicans in their microflora. Normally our immune system recognises invading Candida cells and kills them, thereby protecting us from infection. However, Candida infections arise when the efficiency of this immune surveillance is compromised. Hence this fungus is a frequent cause of irritating yeast infections such as "thrush". It also causes life-threatening bloodstream infections in weak and vulnerable patients, often undoing the excellent work done by cancer treatment and intensive care medicine. Indeed, in some patient groups, over 40% of these infections are fatal. As well as having a significant impact on human health, these infections have a significant economic impact. Despite the availability of reasonably effective antifungal drugs, bloodstream infections are estimated to extend the hospitalisation of patients by 22 days, increasing health care costs by over £20,000 per patient. As yet, no antifungal vaccines are available. Their development depends on an understanding of the mechanisms by which our immune system recognises and kills Candida cells.
Significant progress has been made however. Research from a number of laboratories (including our own) has revealed that immune cells recognise specific types of molecule on the Candida cell surface as "foreign". After recognising these molecules ("pathogen-associated molecular patterns"), the immune cells generally swallow the Candida cells (a process called "phagocytosis"), and then kill them by subjecting the fungus to a battery of toxic chemicals, thereby clearing the infection. This generally accepted view is based largely on experiments involving Candida albicans cells grown in the laboratory under well-defined culture conditions on specific growth media, and not cells grown in an infected host. Unfortunately, these laboratory growth media differ significantly from the conditions that Candida experiences during an infection. We have shown recently that changes in growth conditions significantly affect: (a) the architecture of the Candida cell surface; (b) recognition by our immune system; and (c) Candida's capacity to cause disease. Therefore our hypothesis is that during the onset and progression of an infection, Candida cells encounter and adapt to changes in host niches, thereby affecting their growth. This affects the expression and exposure of "pathogen-associated molecular patterns" on the fungal cell surface. We predict that these changes strongly influence the effectiveness of local immune surveillance, allowing more fungal cells to survive these host defences, thereby influencing disease progression and the outcome of the infection. In other words, fungal physiology resists host immunology.
The over-arching goal of our research programme is to test this hypothesis by defining the effects of Candida adaptation mechanisms upon the efficacy of immune surveillance and infection outcome. With the help of the three postdoctoral researchers, plus two PhD students provided by Aberdeen University, we will achieve this by combining our synergistic expertise in the analysis of Candida albicans nutrient and stress adaptation, the Candida cell surface, Candida pathogen-associated molecular patterns and immune recognition, the dynamics of phagocytosis and fungal killing, and Candida infection biology. We will integrate well-established molecular approaches with powerful new genomic technologies and state-of-the-art cellular imaging (many of which were developed in our labs). This research is essential if we are to properly understand anti-Candida immunity in the context of disease onset and progression. This knowledge will facilitate the development of effective anti-Candida vaccines and novel immunotherapies.
Significant progress has been made however. Research from a number of laboratories (including our own) has revealed that immune cells recognise specific types of molecule on the Candida cell surface as "foreign". After recognising these molecules ("pathogen-associated molecular patterns"), the immune cells generally swallow the Candida cells (a process called "phagocytosis"), and then kill them by subjecting the fungus to a battery of toxic chemicals, thereby clearing the infection. This generally accepted view is based largely on experiments involving Candida albicans cells grown in the laboratory under well-defined culture conditions on specific growth media, and not cells grown in an infected host. Unfortunately, these laboratory growth media differ significantly from the conditions that Candida experiences during an infection. We have shown recently that changes in growth conditions significantly affect: (a) the architecture of the Candida cell surface; (b) recognition by our immune system; and (c) Candida's capacity to cause disease. Therefore our hypothesis is that during the onset and progression of an infection, Candida cells encounter and adapt to changes in host niches, thereby affecting their growth. This affects the expression and exposure of "pathogen-associated molecular patterns" on the fungal cell surface. We predict that these changes strongly influence the effectiveness of local immune surveillance, allowing more fungal cells to survive these host defences, thereby influencing disease progression and the outcome of the infection. In other words, fungal physiology resists host immunology.
The over-arching goal of our research programme is to test this hypothesis by defining the effects of Candida adaptation mechanisms upon the efficacy of immune surveillance and infection outcome. With the help of the three postdoctoral researchers, plus two PhD students provided by Aberdeen University, we will achieve this by combining our synergistic expertise in the analysis of Candida albicans nutrient and stress adaptation, the Candida cell surface, Candida pathogen-associated molecular patterns and immune recognition, the dynamics of phagocytosis and fungal killing, and Candida infection biology. We will integrate well-established molecular approaches with powerful new genomic technologies and state-of-the-art cellular imaging (many of which were developed in our labs). This research is essential if we are to properly understand anti-Candida immunity in the context of disease onset and progression. This knowledge will facilitate the development of effective anti-Candida vaccines and novel immunotherapies.
Technical Summary
An individual's susceptibility to fungal infection is heightened by factors that attenuate immune surveillance. Considerable progress has been made in defining the mechanisms by which innate immune cells recognise and clear Candida albicans, the major fungal pathogen of humans. These depend on the recognition of specific pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by host pathogen recognition receptors (PRRs). To date, C. albicans PAMPs have generally been defined using fungal cells grown under standardised conditions in vitro that do not accurately reflect dynamic host microenvironments. In reality, the fungus is a moving target. It adapts to host signals such as local nutrients, thermal fluctuations and iron limitation by altering its cell surface. We recently showed that the adaptation of C. albicans to physiologically relevant carbon sources triggers dramatic changes in cell wall architecture, immune recognition and virulence. Therefore, in this programme we will test our hypothesis that fungal adaptation within host niches influences the efficacy of local immune surveillance, thereby strongly impacts on disease progression. First, we will establish how fungal adaptation impacts on PAMP exposure at the C. albicans cell surface by combining targeted molecular dissection in C. albicans and the host with genomic-wide screens and biochemical characterisation. Next we will define how these changes influence the dynamics of Candida-phagocyte interactions by combining precise molecular intervention with state-of-the-art 4-D video microscopy. We will also exploit new synthetic reporters to determine the impact of these changes on disease progression in well-established infection models. Furthermore, the molecular characterisation of C. albicans cells from patient samples will establish the relevance of these major findings to human infection. In this way we will establish a key principle in infection biology - that fungal adaptation resists host immunology.
Planned Impact
Our programme addresses an understudied issue of central importance to fungal infection. We will generate valuable new information about the impact of fungal adaptation upon host immunity and infection outcome. This will benefit companies interested in developing anti-Candida vaccines and therapies, clinicians specialising in medical microbiology, the general public, and our researchers. To maximise our impact in these areas we will continue to:
1. Ensure that our scientific observations and datasets are disseminated effectively.
2. Protect and exploit any valuable intellectual property that arises during the project.
3. Contribute to public outreach programmes with a view to enhancing the public understanding of science.
4. Further enhance our collaborations in the UK and abroad.
5. Provide an excellent and multidisciplinary training for our PDRAs.
DISSEMINATION:
We will continue to disseminate our findings to academics, companies and clinicians through: publications in leading journals; presentations at international conferences on molecular biology, immunology and infection biology; the release of large datasets to public repositories; collaborations with international colleagues, clinical mycologists and companies; and through our personal websites.
IP & TRANSLATION:
We will regularly review our work to identify potentially valuable IP with our Research and Innovation Office. In particular, we will protect information that might lead to the development of anti-Candida vaccines or novel immunotherapies that complement the limited number of antifungal drugs currently available to treat systemic fungal infections. The commercial translation of valuable findings will be achieved with help from our extensive and longstanding links with SMEs and pharmaceutical companies. These activities will be financed by our MRC Confidence in Concept Fund and Wellcome Trust-funded Institutional Strategic Support Fund and BBSRC Excellence With Impact award.
In the longer term, our programme will facilitate the development of more effective antifungal therapies. This clinical impact will be realised through Erwig (a practicing clinician), Mihai Netea and Adilia Warris (a clinical mycologist in the Aberdeen Fungal Group), and our many clinical colleagues in the medical mycology field.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
This programme will be of interest to the general public because many individuals suffer Candida infections. [This fungus is a frequent cause of oral and vaginal thrush. (Most women suffer an episode of vaginitis in their lifetime. Over 75 million women suffer >4 episodes/year.) Also, C. albicans is a common cause of life-threatening systemic infections that, even with current antifungal drugs, display high morbidities (>40%).] We will continue our public outreach activities with support from our Aberdeen University Public Engagement Unit and Press Office. We disseminate information via our Aberdeen Fungal Group website and Facebook page, and through our Wellcome Trust Strategic Award website. This includes information about controversial issues as well as fungal immunology and medical mycology to counteract public exposure to misinformation and questionable treatments. In the longer term the public will benefit through the development of improved antifungal therapies (above).
COLLABORATION:
This programme involves new US collaborators. They extend our large collaborative network that includes partners in North America, European Networks, UK Wellcome Trust Strategic Consortia, and the Scottish Infectious Disease Research Initiative.
TRAINING:
Our researchers will receive an excellent multidisciplinary training in medical mycology, molecular biology, genomics, phagocyte biology and infection biology. Their career development will be enhanced by our collaborative networks, regular mentoring, and training in transferable skills of relevance to diverse sectors. This will build UK capacity in this under-represented field.
1. Ensure that our scientific observations and datasets are disseminated effectively.
2. Protect and exploit any valuable intellectual property that arises during the project.
3. Contribute to public outreach programmes with a view to enhancing the public understanding of science.
4. Further enhance our collaborations in the UK and abroad.
5. Provide an excellent and multidisciplinary training for our PDRAs.
DISSEMINATION:
We will continue to disseminate our findings to academics, companies and clinicians through: publications in leading journals; presentations at international conferences on molecular biology, immunology and infection biology; the release of large datasets to public repositories; collaborations with international colleagues, clinical mycologists and companies; and through our personal websites.
IP & TRANSLATION:
We will regularly review our work to identify potentially valuable IP with our Research and Innovation Office. In particular, we will protect information that might lead to the development of anti-Candida vaccines or novel immunotherapies that complement the limited number of antifungal drugs currently available to treat systemic fungal infections. The commercial translation of valuable findings will be achieved with help from our extensive and longstanding links with SMEs and pharmaceutical companies. These activities will be financed by our MRC Confidence in Concept Fund and Wellcome Trust-funded Institutional Strategic Support Fund and BBSRC Excellence With Impact award.
In the longer term, our programme will facilitate the development of more effective antifungal therapies. This clinical impact will be realised through Erwig (a practicing clinician), Mihai Netea and Adilia Warris (a clinical mycologist in the Aberdeen Fungal Group), and our many clinical colleagues in the medical mycology field.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
This programme will be of interest to the general public because many individuals suffer Candida infections. [This fungus is a frequent cause of oral and vaginal thrush. (Most women suffer an episode of vaginitis in their lifetime. Over 75 million women suffer >4 episodes/year.) Also, C. albicans is a common cause of life-threatening systemic infections that, even with current antifungal drugs, display high morbidities (>40%).] We will continue our public outreach activities with support from our Aberdeen University Public Engagement Unit and Press Office. We disseminate information via our Aberdeen Fungal Group website and Facebook page, and through our Wellcome Trust Strategic Award website. This includes information about controversial issues as well as fungal immunology and medical mycology to counteract public exposure to misinformation and questionable treatments. In the longer term the public will benefit through the development of improved antifungal therapies (above).
COLLABORATION:
This programme involves new US collaborators. They extend our large collaborative network that includes partners in North America, European Networks, UK Wellcome Trust Strategic Consortia, and the Scottish Infectious Disease Research Initiative.
TRAINING:
Our researchers will receive an excellent multidisciplinary training in medical mycology, molecular biology, genomics, phagocyte biology and infection biology. Their career development will be enhanced by our collaborative networks, regular mentoring, and training in transferable skills of relevance to diverse sectors. This will build UK capacity in this under-represented field.
Publications
Alder-Rangel A
(2020)
The Third International Symposium on Fungal Stress - ISFUS.
in Fungal biology
Alonso M
(2023)
Fungal spore swelling and germination are restricted by the macrophage phagolysosome
in Fungal Biology
Alonso MF
(2022)
The nature of the fungal cargo induces significantly different temporal programmes of macrophage phagocytosis.
in Cell surface (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Alves R
(2020)
Transcriptional responses of Candida glabrata biofilm cells to fluconazole are modulated by the carbon source.
in NPJ biofilms and microbiomes
Alves R
(2020)
Adapting to survive: How Candida overcomes host-imposed constraints during human colonization.
in PLoS pathogens
Avelar G
(2022)
Impact of Changes at the Candida Albicans Cell Surface Upon Immunogenicity and Colonisation in the Gastrointestinal Tract
in SSRN Electronic Journal
Avelar G
(2024)
A CO 2 sensing module modulates ß-1,3-glucan exposure in Candida albicans
in mBio
Avelar GM
(2022)
Impact of changes at the Candida albicans cell surface upon immunogenicity and colonisation in the gastrointestinal tract.
in Cell surface (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Bain JM
(2021)
Immune cells fold and damage fungal hyphae.
in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Description | Collaboration with Hiroji Chibana (Chiba) |
Organisation | Chiba University |
Department | Medical Mycology Research Center |
Country | Japan |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Phenotypic analysis of Candida glabrata mutants |
Collaborator Contribution | Provision of Candida glabrata mutants |
Impact | None as yet |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | Collaboration with Markus Ralser (Berlin) |
Organisation | Charité - University of Medicine Berlin |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Phenotypic analysis of Candida glabrata mutants |
Collaborator Contribution | Proteomic analysis of Candida glabrata mutants |
Impact | None as yet |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | Collaboration with Mihai Netea (Nijmegen) |
Organisation | Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center |
Department | Orthopaedic Research Laboratory |
Country | Netherlands |
Sector | Hospitals |
PI Contribution | Candida albicans molecular biology and genomics |
Collaborator Contribution | Fungal immunology; clinical samples |
Impact | Joint research papers |
Start Year | 2012 |
Description | Collaboration with other Group Leaders in the Aberdeen Fungal Group |
Organisation | University of Aberdeen |
Department | Aberdeen Fungal Group |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Multifarious contributions relating to Candida albicans genomics, molecular biology, systems biology |
Collaborator Contribution | Multifarious contributions relating to Candida albicans cell wall, drug tolerance, immunology and infection biology |
Impact | Outputs - numerous successful collaborations leading to >100 joint papers. |
Description | Al Brown & Judith Bain - Fighting Fungal Infection - Connect Event |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Al Brown organised and presented a Connect Event (for university alumni) about "Fighting Fungal Infection. Judith Bain also presented at this event, which was held on 15th February 2018, in the Institute of Medical Sciences, Aberdeen, UK |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - Invited Talk, International Congress of Genetics, Iguacu Falls, Brazil, September 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented an Invited Talk on "The adaptation of a major fungal pathogen, Candida albicans, to the environmental complexity of host niches" during the International Congress of Genetics, Iguacu Falls, Brazil, September 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - Invited Talk, University of Umea, Sweden, October 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented an Invited Talk on "Candida albicans infections, immunity and therapy" at the University of Umea, Umea, Sweden, October 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - Opportunities North East Biomanufacturing Workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Al Brown contributed to a Biomanufacturing Workshop organised by Opportunities North East on 20 July 2018, Aberdeen, UK |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - Plenary Lecture, 31st REGEM Microbial Genetics Meeting, Brazil, September 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented the Plenary Lecture on "Adaptation to specific host signals triggers immune evasion in Candida albicans, a human fungal pathogen" at the 31st REGEM (Microbial Genetics Meeting) at Iguacu Falls, Brazil, in September 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - Plenary Lecture, Forum on Infection and Immunity: Chiba, Japan, November 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented a Plenary Talk on "Adaptation to specific host signals triggers immune evasion in Candida albicans, a human fungal pathogen" during the Forum on Infection and Immunity in Chiba, Japan, November 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown - chaired session at ISHAM Conference, Amsterdam, July 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown organised and chaired the session on "Nutrition and Stress" at the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology Conference, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, July 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Al Brown Invited Talk in Jena 2020 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk on the "Impact of fungal adaptation upon host-fungus interactions" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the FEBS Advanced Course on Alternative Infection Models: Jena, Germany, February 2020 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown Plenary Lecture at 7th PYFF Conference 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Plenary Lecture on "Candida albicans displays anticipatory responses that promote immune evasion" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the 7th Conference on the Physiology of Yeast and Filamentous Fungi: Milan Italy, June 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at 29th Fungal Genetics Conference 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk on "Candida albicans displays anticipatory responses that promote immune evasion" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the 30th Fungal Genetics Conference: Asilomar, California, USA, March 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at Candida & Candidiasis Conference 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited seminar entitled "Factors affecting host-Candida interactions during phagocytic attack" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at ISFUS 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited lecture on "Stress adaptation of a fungal pathogen to complex niches in the human host" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the 3rd International Symposium on Fungal Stress: São Jose dos Campos, Brazil, May 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at the Fungal Immunology GRC 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited lecture on the "Impact of host inputs on immune evasion by Candida albicans" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the Gordon Research Conference on Fungal Immunology: Galveston, Texas, USA, January 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at the University of California San Francisco 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited seminar entitled "What's coming next? Anticipatory immune evasion in a fungal pathogen" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Al Brown invited lecture at the University of Dusseldorf 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk entitled "Fungal memory and immune evasion. Molecules of Infection Symposium" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Al Brown invited talk at FASEB Conference 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk on "Micronutrient limitation triggers immune evasion in Candida albicans, a major fungal pathogen of humans" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the FASEB Conference on Microbial Pathogenesis: Snowmass, Colorado, USA, July 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown invited talk in Dusseldorf 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Invited talk on "The fungal cell surface, memory, and immune evasion" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at a symposium on Molecules of Infection Symposium: University of Dusseldorf, Germany, October 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown seminar at Exeter University 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited seminar on "Fungal memory promotes fitness in the host" that presented outputs of the MRC Programme Grant at the University of Exeter UK, October 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Al Brown session chair at Candida & Candidiasis Conference 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Chair of Session on "Fungal and Host Signaling" at the International Conference on Candida & Candidiasis 2021 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Arnab Pradhan - Talk at the Fungal GRS, USA June2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Arnab Pradhan (PhD) presented a talk on "Non-Canonical Signaling Mediates Changes in Fungal Cell Wall PAMPs that Drive Immune Evasion" at the Fungal Gordon Research Seminar, Holderness, New Hampshire, USA, in June 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | BMS Conference Talk - Delma Childers 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presentation of key MRC Programme Grant outputs to the research community |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Blog for Nature Microbiology paper |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | This blog described the background to our study described in Nature Microbiology (vol 2, article 16238). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://naturemicrobiologycommunity.nature.com/ |
Description | CONNECT - Fungal Disease - Tackling the Hidden Killers |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Public engagement event that highlighted the global impact of fungal infections and Aberdeen-based research being performed to address this impact. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Collaboration with the Production Team for the Hollywood movie "Life" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Dr Delma Childers ( a PDRA on my MRC Programme Grant) collaborated with the Production Team to provide microbiology expertise for the Hollywood movie "Life" starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson and Ryan Reynolds. The movie was released in the UK on 24th March 2017, and Dr Childers attended the premiere in London. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Dan Larcombe - MRC Centre for Medical Mycology laboratory tours during Aberdeen University Doors Open Day |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Dan Larcombe (PhD student) helped with MRC Centre for Medical Mycology laboratory tours during Aberdeen University Doors Open Day, |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Dan Larcombe - Talk at the ASM Candida and Candidiasis Conference, USA |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Dan Larcombe (PhD) presented a talk on "Glucose enhanced oxidative stress resistance as an example of adaptive prediction in Candida albicans" at the ASM Candida and Candidiasis Conference, Providence, RI, USA, April 2018 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Dan Larcombe - talk at BSMM Conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Dan Larcombe (PhD) presented a talk on "Glucose enhanced oxidative stress resistance as an example of adaptive prediction in Candida albicans" at the British Society for Medical Mycology Annual Conference, Bristol, UK, March 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Dan Larcombe CLESCon Talk 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Presentation of key MRC Programme Grant outputs to the research community |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Dan Larcombe Postgraduate Talk 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Presentation of key MRC Programme Grant outputs to the research community |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Daniel Larcombe - COVID-19 testing voluteer |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Daniel Larcombe was a COVID-19 testing volunteer at Southwest Pathology Services, Taunton, April - June 2020 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Delma Childers & Gabriela Avelar - MRC Centre exhibit on 'Frightening Fungi' in Aberdeen Railway Station |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Delma Childers & Gabriela Avelar (PDRAs) helped to organise and present the MRC Centre exhibit on 'Frightening Fungi' in Aberdeen Railway Station on Saturday 23rd June, Aberdeen, UK |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Delma Childers - Soapbox Science speaker, Aberdeen May Festival |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Delma Childers (PDRA) was a Soapbox Science speaker duringthe Aberdeen May Festival in May 2018, Aberdeen, UK |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Delma Childers - Talk at ISHAM Conference, Amsterdam |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Delma Childers (PDRA) presented a talk on "Fungal Transformers: Tracking a Moving Target." at the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology Conference, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, July 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Delma Childers - Talk at the Fungal GRS, USA, June 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Delma Childers (PDRA) presented a talk on "Fungal Transformers: Tracking a Moving Target" during the Fungal Gordon Research Seminar, Holderness, New Hampshire, USA, June 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Delma Childers BYG Conference Talk 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presentation of key MRC Programme Grant outputs to the research community |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Delma Childers Invited Talk - Exeter |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Delma Childers (a PDRA on the MRC Programme Grant) presented and invited Talk on "The influence of carbon source-driven metabolic rewiring and dynamic cell wall changes upon yeast pathogenesis" at Exeter University, UK |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Emer Hickey - BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Emer Hickey ran an interview series at the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition in January 2021. She interviewed some prominent Irish based scientists and past winners of the competition. This was/ is still available online. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Emer Hickey - London International Youth Science Forum 2020-21 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Emer Hickey is helping to organise the London International Youth Science Forum. This is a youth conference which a global reach (usually over 500 students from over 70 different countries). This conference will be held in July and is hoping to run as both an in-person conference (for those based in the UK) and online (for people who can't travel due to covid restrictions) |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Emer Hickey - Exeter Scholars Program 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Emer Hickey is a speaker at the Exeter Scholars Program. She presents to high school students in their penultimate and final year about her journey through science, my current work and how young people can engage in scientific research at an early age. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Environmental adaptation in Candida during colonisation and infection - European Fungal Genetics Conference (ECFG13), Paris. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Dissemination of our scientific outputs to a broad scientific community through an invited lecture |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Explorathon - European Researchers' Night 2017 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented the The Fungal Kingdom exhibit at the Science Museum, Aberdeen, for Explorathon - European Researchers' Night on 29 September 2017. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Fungal Kingdom exhibit at Explorathon during European Researchers Night |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Contribution to the presentation of the "Fungal Kingdom" exhibit at Explorathon in the Aberdeen Science Museum during European Researchers Night [30 September], which was attended by hundreds. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.explorathon.co.uk/aberdeen |
Description | GRC on Cellular & Molecular Fungal Biology 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Co-Deputy Chair Gordon Research Conference on Cellular & Molecular Fungal Biology |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=11335 |
Description | Invited Lecture at Mycology Course, Szeged Hungary |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Invited Lecture at Mycology Course, Szeged Hungary on "Impact of metabolic adaptation upon Candida albicans pathogenicity" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Invited Lecture at Mycology Systems Biology Course, UK |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Invited Lecture at Mycology Systems Biology Course, UK on "How is Systems Biology increasing our understanding of Candida albicans pathobiology?" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Invited Talk - University of Dusseldorf, September 2017 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented and Invited talk on "Metabolic adaptation in Candida albicans impacts pathogenicity at multiple levels" at a Molecules of Infection Symposium at the University of Dusseldorf, Germany, in September 2017 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Invited Talk - British Mycological Society, September 2017 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented an Invited Talk on "Candida albicans is a moving target for the immune system as it adapts to host signals" at the British Mycological Society Conference in Nottingham, UK, in September 2017 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Invited Talk - Microbiology Society, Edinburgh, 2017 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented an invited talk on "Candida albicans is a moving target for the immune system as it adapts to host signals" at the Microbiology Society Conference, Edinburgh, UK, in April 2017. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Invited seminar (NIMR) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Seminar at National Institute for Medical Research, Mill Hill on "Impact of metabolic adaptation on the pathogenicity of Candida albicans" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Judith Bail Café Sci Presentation 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Presentation to the public describing the medical importance of fungal infections and fungal immunology |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Judith Bain - Fungal Immunology Microscopy Demonstration during Aberdeen University Doors Open Day |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Judith Bain presented a Fungal Immunology Microscopy Demonstration to the general public during the University of Aberdeen Doors Open Day on September 8th 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Judith Bain - Invited Talk at the ISHAM Congress, Amsterdam, July 2018. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Judith Bain presented an Invited Talk on "Mechanisms of invisibility: 3D, real time and holographic imaging reveals dynamics of Candida albicans evasion of host recognition" at the International Society for Human and Animal Mycoses Congress, in Amsterdam, in July 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Judith Bain - Mad March Science Festival |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Judith Bain presented on "The Mars Project" (with Cromar Future Group) at the Mad March Science Festival, held at Aboyne Primary School on March 10th, 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Judith Bain - Science Festival on Donside |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Judith Bain presented on "Fungi: Hidden Killers" (with Cromar Future Group) at the Science Festival on Donside, held at Towie Primary School on March 25th, 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Judith Bain - Two Craigievar school events |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Judith Bain presented TWO events to the Craigievar Explorers Afterschool Science Club on "Fungi & bacteria, around us and on us" on May 21st and Sept 24th, 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Judith Bain Career Discussion for Girls 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Women in an interesting job talking to girls about their work and potential careers in science |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Judith Bain Hands-on activities at Mad March Festival 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Presentation to the public describing the medical importance of fungal infections and fungal immunology |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Judith Bain talk at Mad March Festival 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Presentation to school children about careers in science |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Killer Fungus exhibit at Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Contribution to the presentation of the successful "Killer Fungus" exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in London, which was attended by thousands. Our feedback indicated that this exhibit increased awareness of the impact of fungal diseases upon human health and of the types of research that are being done by UK researchers to address this impact. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/summer-science-exhibition/exhibits/killer-fungu... |
Description | Medical Mycology Training in Africa - AFGrica Unit opening in Cape Town, South Africa |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The AFGrica Unit was officially opened on 10th August 2017 in the Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Cape Town, South Africa. The AFGrica Unit is formal collaboration between the University of Aberdeen and the University of Cape Town (UCT). The AFGrica Unit in a centre for training in medical mycology that is based in South Africa, but will provide training for practitioners throughout the African continent, where fungal infections account for more deaths than tuberculosis or malaria. The PI is Prof. Gordon Brown, and the other leaders of the AFG are CoIs (Profs Neil Gow, Adilia Warris and Al Brown). Al Brown presented a lecture at the Medical Mycology Training Course, which was run by the AFGrica Unit on 8 August 2017 at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Metabolic adaptation in Candida albicans during colonisation and infection - American Society for Microbiology Conference on Candida and Candidiasis, Seattle USA |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Dissemination of our scientific outputs to a broad scientific community through an invited lecture |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | MycoTalk 2022 - Al Brown |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited online MycoTalk, organised by the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology, to >200 participants across the world (including Europe, the Americas, Australasia, etc.). Following the talk there were discussions about the ideas I presented with PIs in Europe and the USA. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.exeter.ac.uk/research/medicalmycology/mycotalks/ |
Description | Participation in Killer Fungus Exhibit at Manchester Science Festival |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Dan Larcombe and Arnab Pradhan (PhD students associated with my MRC Programme Grant) contributed to the presentation of the Killer Fungus exhibit at the Manchester Science Festival. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | PechaKucha presentation on "There is fungus among us" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Dr Judith Bain ( a PDRA on my MRC Programme Grant) presented a PechaKucha on "There is fungus among us" in the Belmont Cinema, Aberdeen on 16th March 2017 during British Science Week. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Podcast for Nature Microbiology paper |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | This podcast described the rationale behind our study described in Nature Microbiology (vol 2, article 16238). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://soundcloud.com/mrccmm/lactate-signalling-regulates-glucan-masking-and-immune-evasion |
Description | Press release to announce the award of our MRC Programme Grant |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | This press release to announce the award of our MRC Programme Grant was taken up by local media (newspapers). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Press release to announce the publication of our Nature Microbiology paper |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | This press release to announce the publication of our Nature Microbiology paper was picked up by national papers and by some professional publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | ProkaGENOMICS Plenary Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Al Brown presented the Plenary Talk at the ProkaGENOMICS Conference in Gottingen, Germany, in September 2017. the talk was on "Fungus-host interactions during Candida colonisation and infection" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Video on Research Interests |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Released a short video for a Lay Audience on my research interests and their importance on our MRC Centre website in March 2017 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |