ALS4 — Candida albicans

Summary

C6_04130C_A (ALS4) on Candida albicans chromosome 6 encodes an agglutinin-like sequence (ALS) family protein, a cell-surface adhesin containing agglutinin-like repeats. The product is localized to the yeast-form and hyphal cell walls, the plasma membrane, and extracellular vesicles. It is annotated with fibronectin, laminin, CAM, and peptide binding activities. The gene is associated with multiple aspects of host interaction, including adhesion of symbiont to host, host invasion, and symbiont-mediated perturbation of host process. It is also linked to biofilm formation (both single-species and multi-species), flocculation, cell-cell adhesion, germ tube formation, filamentous growth in response to neutral pH, reductive iron assimilation, and cellular responses to thermal stimulus and copper ion homeostasis. Studies of related genes in other species link the family to virulence and pathogenicity.