How Candida biofilms evolve to survive and resist drugs
Official title: Adaptive Evolution of Candida Biofilms
Funded at San Jose State University · NIH-11164728 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are growing Candida glabrata biofilms over many generations to find how they change and become resistant to antifungal treatments, helping people who get fungal infections.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | San Jose State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Jose, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2022 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $146,500 |
| NIH project number | 5R16AI167832-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11164728 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with recurrent, invasive, or hard-to-treat Candida infections—especially immunocompromised patients—would be most likely to benefit from resulting therapies or to be candidates for follow-up clinical studies.
✕Less likely to help
People without Candida infections or whose infections are not driven by biofilms may not receive direct benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This project will create lab methods that let fungal biofilms grow long-term so scientists can watch how they adapt over time. The team will work with Candida glabrata, a common cause of candidiasis, and allow biofilms to evolve to identify genetic changes linked to survival and drug resistance. They will test which genes are essential for biofilm growth and resistance and characterize the resulting adaptations. Results are intended to point to new targets for antifungal therapies and to inform future clinical studies for people with recurrent infections.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could reveal genes and mechanisms that allow Candida biofilms to resist treatment, guiding development of more effective antifungal therapies for people with candidiasis.
How similar studies have gone: Related lab studies have found resistance mechanisms in free-floating Candida, but long-term experimental evolution of fungal biofilms is relatively novel and less established.
Where this research is happening
-
San Jose State University
San Jose, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kao, Katy C — San Jose State University
- Study coordinator: Kao, Katy C
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.