Journal of Fungi Review Nitrogen, Iron, and Zinc Acquisition: Key Nutrients to Aspergillus fumigatus Virulence Uxue Perez-Cuesta , Xabier Guruceaga , Saioa Cendon-Sanchez , Eduardo Pelegri-Martinez, Fernando L. Hernando, Andoni Ramirez-Garcia * , Ana Abad-Diaz-de-Cerio and Aitor Rementeria * Fungal and Bacterial Biomics Research Group, Department of Immunology, Microbiology, and Parasitology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain;
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[email protected] (A.R.) Abstract: Aspergillus fumigatus is a ubiquitous soil decomposer and an opportunistic pathogen that is characterized by its large metabolic machinery for acquiring nutrients from media. Lately, an ever-increasing number of genes involved in fungal nutrition has been associated with its virulence. Of these, nitrogen, iron, and zinc metabolism-related genes are particularly noteworthy, since 78% of them have a direct implication in virulence. In this review, we describe the sensing, uptake and regulation process of the acquisition of these nutrients, the connections between pathways and the virulence-implicated genes. Nevertheless, only 40% of the genes mentioned in this review have been assayed for roles in virulence, leaving a wide field of knowledge that remains uncertain and might Citation: Perez-Cuesta, U.; offer new therapeutic and diagnostic targets. Guruceaga, X.; Cendon-Sanchez, S.; Pelegri-Martinez, E.; Hernando, F.L.; Keywords: Aspergillus fumigatus; nitrogen; iron; zinc; nutrient acquisition; siderophores; metals; Ramirez-Garcia, A.; transcription factors; primary metabolism; nitrogen metabolite repression Abad-Diaz-de-Cerio, A.; Rementeria, A.