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Deborah S. Fox, Ph.D.
- Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics
- Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, Immunology
and Parasitology
- LSU Health Sciences Center
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| Curriculum
Vitae
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Research Interests
- Cryptococcus neoformans cell wall biogenesis and
antifungal resistance
- Signal transduction in fungal pathogenesis
Research Projects
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Cell
Wall Biogenesis - Fungal infections are a frequent and
growing cause of morbidity and mortality in the ever-increasing
organ transplant, cancer, and HIV/AIDS patient populations.
In recent years, antifungal drugs that target the enzymes
responsible for the synthesis of cell wall components have
been developed and are beginning to be used to treat fungal
disease. In particular, members of the echinocandin class
of antifungal agents are potent inhibitors of cell wall synthesis
in many pathogenic fungi, but display very low potency against
Cryptococcus neoformans, a medically significant
fungal pathogen. Because the inherent echinocandin-resistance
of C. neoformans is likely a direct result of fundamental
differences in the way cell wall biogenesis is regulated in
this organism compared to other fungi, we anticipate that
the identification of key components of signaling and regulatory
complexes involved in cell wall biogenesis will facilitate
the elucidation of mechanisms that promote resistance. To
this end, we are working toward the identification of signaling
events involved in cell wall biogenesis using a variety of
biochemical and molecular approaches, including cell wall
composition analysis, yeast two-hybrid library screening,
and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.
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Antifungal
Resistance – To explore the mechanism of echinocandin
resistance in C. neoformans in greater detail, we
are examining changes in the protein composition of the cell
wall and cell membrane that occur in response to treatment
with echinocandins and other antifungals that target cell
wall synthesis. These studies will aid in the identification
of key components of cell wall biogenesis machinery in this
pathogen and will provide insight into the molecular mechanisms
of antifungal drug resistance.
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Proteomics
- Development of a proteome map to complement the annotation
of the C. neoformans genome.
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Fox
Lab
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