Histoplasma capsulatum (Hc) is a facultative intracellular fungal pathogen that causes acute
and chronic pneumonia. In this study, we investigated the role of the pulmonary collectins,
surfactant proteins (SP) A and D, in the clearance of Hc yeast from the lung. Exposure of
yeast to either collectin induced a dose-dependent decrease in [3 H] leucine incorporation
by several strains of Hc. This decrement was attributed to killing of the collectin-exposed
yeast since it failed to grow on agar medium. Exposure to SP-A or-D resulted in increased …