Vascular Notch-Related Protein Expression in a Rat Model of Central Venous Catheter-Associated Candida albicans Infection Under Antifungal and Prostaglandin-Pathway Interventions
Pathogens, cilt.15, sa.7, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 15 Sayı: 7
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.3390/pathogens15070748
- Dergi Adı: Pathogens
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, BIOSIS, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Directory of Open Access Journals, Natural Science Collection (ProQuest), Biological Science Database (ProQuest)
- Anahtar Kelimeler: antifungal therapy, Candida albicans, central venous catheter infection, immunohistochemistry, Notch signaling, prostaglandin pathway
- Akdeniz Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
Central venous catheters are a major risk factor for Candida albicans vascular infections, which remain challenging to manage. Although antifungal therapy is standard, the host pathways shaping vascular responses—particularly the Notch signaling pathway (NSP)—are not well characterized in this context. In addition, the potential influence of the prostaglandin pathway on vascular NSP-related responses during infection remains unclear. In this study, a rat model of central venous catheter-associated C. albicans infection was used to evaluate microbiological outcomes and vascular NSP-related protein expression. Immunohistochemical analyses were performed to assess Candida immunostaining alongside the expression of Notch receptors (Notch1–3) and ligands (DLL1/4, Jagged1/2) in vascular tissues. Experimental groups included sham, infected control, antifungal-treated (fluconazole, caspofungin, liposomal amphotericin B), and prostaglandin pathway-intervention groups (sulprostone and sulprostone followed by indomethacin). C. albicans infection was associated with higher vascular NSP-related protein expression compared with sham animals. Antifungal-treated groups showed lower NSP-related protein expression, while fungicidal agents were associated with absence of fungal growth in catheter and kidney cultures. In the sulprostone–indomethacin-treated group, NSP-related protein expression levels were lower than those in the sulprostone-treated group despite persistent fungal burden. In conclusion, central venous catheter-associated C. albicans infection was associated with altered vascular NSP-related protein expression. Differences in NSP-related protein expression patterns were observed across antifungal- and prostaglandin pathway-intervention groups. These findings are descriptive and do not allow causal inference but may provide a basis for future studies exploring the role of NSP in vascular responses to C. albicans infection.