Drosophila have been used to model infection by fungi in the Aspergillus family, as well as to screen for potential treatments. A variety of pathogenic species Aspergillus species are studied in Drosophila, as well as different genotypes of a particular species, which can help isolate Aspergillus genes necessary for infection.
Humans with mutations in CLEC1A (MIM:606782) and CLEC7A (MIM:606264) show an increased susceptibility to Aspergillus infections, see MIM:614079. Neither of those genes has high-ranking orthologs in Drosophila.
Adult Drosophila have been used to model Aspergillus infections. Mutants with defects in the Toll pathway (FBgg0001059), which is essential for defense against fungal infections, are less likely to survive Aspergillus infections.
Both humans and Drosophila can be affected by inhaling or absorbing mycotoxins released as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from Aspergillus. Aspergillus VOCs can become a hazard to humans if the fungus is growing in an indoor environment with poor ventilation. Larvae exposed to Aspergillus VOCs show either delay or failure to pupate, with only 20% reaching adult stage after 10 days. This mimics the most common type of interaction between Drosophila and Aspergillus in the wild, as Aspergillus does not directly grow on living flies or larvae. However, insects carrying Aspergillus fumigatus have been found in the wild, which may make them a potential disease vector (Ramírez-Camejo et al. 2017, FBrf0237560).
[updated June 2019 by FlyBase; FBrf0222196]
Aspergillus fumigatus is a cosmopolitan filamentous fungus found in soils all over the world. As an opportunistic human pathogen, it causes localized infections, aspergilloma (fungus ball), allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, and invasive aspergillosis in immunocompromised patients. The likelihood of serious Aspergillus infection, with accompanying high morbidity and mortality, is based on three factors: the status of immunocompromised patients, the degree of exposure, and fungal virulence. Individuals with hematological malignancies, hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, and recipients of solid organ transplants are at highest risk of developing systemic aspergillosis. (Al-Maliki et al. 2017 and references therein, FBrf0237911.)
Aspergillosis is an infection caused by Aspergillus, a common mold (a type of fungus) that lives indoors and outdoors. Most people breathe in Aspergillus spores every day without getting sick. However, people with weakened immune systems or lung diseases are at a higher risk of developing health problems due to Aspergillus. The types of health problems caused by Aspergillus include allergic reactions, lung infections, and infections in other organs. (From https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/diseases/aspergillosis/index.html, accessed 2019.06.24.)
In both insects and mammals, the interaction of immunostimulatory cell wall molecules of invading fungi with Toll receptor(s) leads to activation of intracellular phosphorylation cascades, with subsequent translocation of nuclear factor κB-like transcriptional factors to the nucleus and induction of antimicrobial peptide-encoding genes . (Hamilos et al. 2012, FBrf0218140.)
