The morphology of colony variants of three species of Candida.

The colonies of 12 isolates of 3 Candida spp. with variant colony forms were studied by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Small colonies were formed by 4 isolates each of C. albicans and C. parapsilosis and by 1 of C. tropicalis. These had an abnormally high proportion of degenerate yeast cells with an associated increase in granular cytoplasmic material intercellularly. The increased matrix in these small colonies formed a thick superficial coat over the organisms. Rough colonies were formed by 1 isolate each of C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. parapsilosis. The convoluted regions of these colonies contained many pseudohyphal cells but few degenerate cells and little granular or fibrillar material in their intercellular matrices. The shape of colonies of Candida spp. may be altered by variations in the viability or the morphology of the organisms.     

氨基酸对白念珠菌形态学影响的研究

目的初步探讨单个氨基酸对白念珠菌形态学的影响。方法用0．67％的酵母氮源基础培养基和2％葡萄糖配制成SD合成培养基,37％恒温摇床培养,研究单个天然氨基酸对白念珠菌形态学的影响,并分别通过不添加碳源和厌氧条件下培养观察对精氨酸诱导的菌丝的影响。结果在含10mmol／L的L－精氨酸的SD液体培养基中,可见大量的菌丝。在含10mmol／L的L一半胱氨酸、L．苏氨酸、L－缬氨酸和L－色氨酸的sD液体培养基中,可见典型的酵母细胞,未见菌丝。在含10mmol／L的其他单个氨基酸的SD液体培养基中可见混合的酵母和菌丝结构。在不含氨基酸或含各种天然氨基酸的SD固体培养基上,白念珠菌的菌落均光滑。但在含10mmol／L的L-精氨酸固体培养基上,光滑的菌落周围可见小的突起,镜下可见菌丝。无氧条件下,无论有无碳源,含精氨酸的SD培养液中白念珠菌只能形成酵母细胞,生长部分受到抑制。结论精氨酸可以诱导白念珠菌菌丝形成,厌氧条件下精氨酸不能诱导白念珠菌菌丝形成。     

Evaluation of a new chromogenic medium (Candida ID) for the isolation and presumptive identification of Candida albicans and other medically important yeasts

Candidiasis is a frequent human infection caused mainly by Candida albicans. However, other species are emerging as important pathogens, as Candida glabrata, Candida parapsilosis, Candida tropicalis, Candida krusei or Candida guilliermondii. Rapid identification of clinical isolates could facilitate diagnosis and treatment. Candida ID (bioMerieux, Spain) is a new medium for the isolation and presumptive identification of yeasts: C. albicans grows as blue colonies, and C. tropicalis, C. guilliermondii, Candida kefyr and Candida lusitaniae as pink ones. The utility of Candida ID was evaluated with more than 700 clinical isolates and type culture collection strains from different genera including Candida, Cryptococcus, Saccharomyces, and Rhodotorula. Presumptive identification was confirmed by germ tube test, microscopic morphology and chlamydoconidia production on corn meal agar and carbohydrate assimilation on API-ATB ID 32C or Vitek (bioMerieux). Growth on Candida ID was rapid (18-24 h) for most of the yeast strains tested. Sensitivity and specificity of identification of C. albicans was significantly high (>98%), since a very low number of isolates were found to be false negative or false positive. A better result was obtained for species growing as pink colonies (>99.5%). Detection of different species of medical important yeasts was easy with Candida ID, as perfectly distinct colors and textures of colonies were observed on this medium. Candida ID allowed the discrimination between C. glabrata (creamy and smooth) and C. krusei (rough and white) colonies. Other species showed different colony textures and colours, white being the predominant colour. Candida ID was very useful for the presumptive identification C. albicans isolates.     

Simultaneous carriage of Candida albicans strains from HIV-infected patients with oral candidiasis: multilocus enzyme electrophoresis analysis

Abstract Genetic diversity of 160 Candida albicans isolates from the oral cavity of 16 HIV-infected adults prior to antifungal treatment was assessed using multilocus enzyme electrophoresis (10 C. albicans colonies were randomly chosen from each specimen culture). 20 electrophoretic types were distinguished from the analysis of 21 enzyme loci (10 were polymorphic). Five patients (31%) were found to be colonized by 2 or 3 genetically distinct strains. Nevertheless, in these five cases, one strain predominated (from 7 to 9 of the 10 colonies). Some HIV + patients with oral candidiasis appear to be simultaneously infected with several genetically different C. albicans strains before antifungal treatment.     

Presence and partial characterization of internal acid protease of Aspergillus oryzae.

A membrane filter procedure is described for the enumeration of Candida albicans in natural waters. Several hundred milliliters of sample can be examined by filtration through 1.2-micrometer membranes. Selectivity is achieved by the use of a defined (yeast-nitrogen base plus maltos-) agar medium inclusion of the antimicrobial agents chloramphenicol and cycloheximide, and incubation at 37 degrees C. C. albicans colonies are differentiated primarily through color by use of a bismuth salt indicator system. Average recovery of various strains of C. albicans stressed in seawater at 4 degrees C was 82%, compared with those of spread plate controls on a noninhibitory medium. With river water and raw sewage, 90% of typical C. albicans colonies were confirmed as such in a simplified germ tube test. Atypical colonies verified as C. albicans were infrequent (3%). C. tropicalis and Torulopsis candida were the most common false-positive colonies.     

New chromogenic agar medium for the identification of Candida spp

A new chromogenic agar medium (Candida diagnostic agar [CDA]) for differentiation of Candida spp. is described. This medium is based on Sabouraud dextrose agar (Oxoid CM41) and contains (per liter) 40.0 g of glucose, 10.0 g of mycological peptone, and 15.0 g of agar along with a novel chromogenic glucosaminidase substrate, ammonium 4-(2-[4-(2-acetamido-2-deoxy-beta-D-glucopyranosyloxy)-3-methoxyphenyl]-vinyl)-1-(propan-3-yl-oate)-quinolium bromide (0.32 g liter(-1)). The glucosaminidase substrate in CDA was hydrolyzed by Candida albicans and Candida dubliniensis, yielding white colonies with deep-red spots on a yellow transparent background after 24 to 48 h of incubation at 37 degrees C. Colonies of Candida tropicalis and Candida kefyr were uniformly pink, and colonies of other Candida spp., including Candida glabrata and Candida parapsilosis, were white. CDA was evaluated by using 115 test strains of Candida spp. and other clinically important yeasts and was compared with two commercially available chromogenic agars (Candida ID agar [bioMerieux] and CHROMagar Candida [CHROMagar Company Ltd.]). On all three agars, colonies of C. albicans were not distinguished from colonies of C. dubliniensis. However, for the group containing C. albicans plus C. dubliniensis, both the sensitivity and the specificity of detection when CDA was used were 100%, compared with values of 97.6 and 100%, respectively, with CHROMagar Candida and 100 and 96.8%, respectively, with Candida ID agar. In addition, for the group containing C. tropicalis plus C. kefyr, the sensitivity and specificity of detection when CDA was used were also 100%, compared with 72.7 and 98.1%, respectively, with CHROMagar Candida. Candida ID agar did not differentiate C. tropicalis and C. kefyr strains but did differentiate members of a broader group (C. tropicalis, C. kefyr, Candida lusitaniae plus Candida guilliermondii); the sensitivity and specificity of detection for members of this group were 94.7 and 93.8%, respectively. In addition to the increased sensitivity and/or specificity of Candida detection when CDA was used, differentiation of colony types on CDA (red spotted, pink, or no color) was unambiguous and did not require precise assessment of colony color.     

In vitro interactions between Blastomyces dermatitidis and other zoopathogenic fungi

The results of in vitro interactions between colonies of Blastomyces dermatitidis and six other zoopathogenic fungi are reported. The interactions were found to range from neutral with Histoplasma capsulatum and Candida albicans to strongly antagonistic with Microsporum gypseum, Pseudallescheria boydii, and Sporothrix schenckii, and including lysis by Cryptococcus neoformans. These observations suggest that interactions between zoopathogenic fungi may be one of the biotic factors likely to influence the occurrence of B. dermatitidis in natural systems.     

Candida dubliniensis identification in Brazilian yeast stock collection

We investigated the presence of Candida dubliniensis among isolates previously identified as Candida albicans and maintained in a yeast stock collection from 1994 to 2000. All isolates were serotyped and further evaluated for antifungal susceptibility profile. After doing a screening test for C. dubliniensis isolates based on the capability of colonies to grow at 42 C, its final identification was obtained by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis using three different primers. A total of 46 out of 548 screened isolates did not exhibit growth at 42 C and were further genotyped by RAPD. Eleven isolates were identified as C. dubliniensis with RAPD analysis. Regarding serotypes, 81.5% of C. albicans and all C. dubliniensis isolates belonged to serotype A. Of note, 9 out of 11 C. dubliniensis isolates were obtained from patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (Aids) and all of them were susceptible to azoles and amphotericin B. We found 17 (3%) C. albicans isolates that were dose-dependent susceptibility or resistant to azoles. In conclusion, we found a low rate of C. dubliniensis isolates among stock cultures of yeasts previously identified as C. albicans. Most of these isolates were recovered from oral samples of Aids patients and exhibited high susceptibility to amphotericin B and azoles. C. albicans serotype A susceptible to all antifungal drugs is the major phenotype found in our stock culture.     

Scanning Electron Microscopy of Intact Colonies of Microorganisms

Colonies of S. mutans OMZ61, Streptococcus sp. D182, Staphylococcus aureus Oxford NCTC 6571, and Candida albicans type A, MRL 3153 were grown on various media. Cubes of agar bearing two to three colonies were excised and processed for scanning electron microscopy. The characteristic shape of the colonies was seen when examined at low magnifications. At a magnification of 2,000 diameters, the arrangement of individual organisms within the colonies was observed. Plano-convex colonies consisted of uniformly distributed organisms, whereas S. mutans colonies presented a more complex arrangement possibly associated with the production of extracellular polysaccharides. Certain colonies were totally or partially covered by an adherent film through which the outline of the organisms could be distinguished.     

Simple detection method for distinguishing dead and living yeast colonies

A rapid and simple assay was developed for detection of yeast colonies containing dying or dead cells. Methylene blue, phloxin B, rose bengal and trypan blue at concentrations of 5-10 micromol l(-1) were shown to stain non-viable cells in colonies of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Candida albicans and Filobasidium capsuligenum without staining or affecting the viability of living cells of the colonies.     

Isolation, characterization, and genetic analysis of monosomic, aneuploid mutants of Candida albicans

A white, prototrophic Candida albicans strain, heterozygous for the ADE2 gene (ade2/ADE2), was treated with the antimitotic agent methyl benzimidazole carbamate, and yielded red, adenine-requiring colonies at a rate of 4 x 10(-3), an order of magnitude higher than the spontaneous rate of Ade- colony formation. These red Ade- colonies were small, growing at approximately half the rate of the parent strain, and gave rise to large red colonies spontaneously. When the chromosomes of the small red colonies were separated by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, the band hybridizing with the ADE2 gene was diminished in staining intensity by half relative to the parent and large red-colony strains. Restriction fragment-length polymorphism analysis and auxotrophic mutant spectra after mutagenesis suggested that the small red Ade- strains were monosomic aneuploids lacking one of a pair of chromosome homologues, while the large red strains had regained a homologue, presumably via a second non-disjunction event. Parasexual genetic analysis of two of the auxotrophs isolated from a putative aneuploid suggested that both mutations were linked to the ADE2 gene. These experiments suggest that targeted chromosome loss and monosomic, aneuploid strains have the potential to extend the scope of genetic analysis in this diploid, asexual organism.     

Intercellular matrix in colonies of Candida.

The histochemistry and fine structure of typical colonies of six species of Candida were studied, using a total of 31 clinical isolates. The colonies consisted of viable and degenerate cells which lay in an intercellular matrix. This matrix was made up of amorphous, granular, and fibrillar components, the relative proportions and total amount of which varied from species to species. The cells of all species were surrounded by a zone of homogeneous amorphus material, which may be a highly cross-linked carbohydrate. This separated intact cells from irregularly distributed granular debris derived from the cytoplasm of degenerate cells. Focal cellular degeneration and associated granular debris were present within the colonies of all species and were most common in the surface layers of cells of colonies of C. albicans and C. tropicalis. The large amounts of intercellular matrix in this region formed a surface coat on colonies of these two species. Intercellular strands of cell wall material, and to a lesser extent other membranous elements from degenerate cells, formed a prominent fibrillar meshwork in the colonies of C. albicans and C. tropicalis, but were less common in those of C. pseudotropicalis and C. guilliermondii and seldom seen in those of C. parapsilosis and C. krusei.     

慢性前列腺炎患者假丝酵母菌感染及耐药性分析

目的 了解慢性前列腺炎与假丝酵母菌感染的相关性及假丝酵母菌的耐药性。方法 采用常规沙堡平板分离360例慢性前列腺炎患者的前列腺液标本中的假丝酵母菌,疑似菌落用ATB Expression鉴定仪进行鉴定。采用ATB-Fungus真菌药敏板,对假丝酵母菌株进行药敏试验。结果 11．7％前列腺液标本（42／360）似丝酵母菌阳性,其中自假丝酵母菌23例（54．7％）,近平滑假丝酵母菌13例（30．9％）,其它6例（14．3％）。假丝酵母菌菌株对两性霉素B和制霉菌素敏感率均为100％,其次为酮康唑,敏感率为97．0％;对5-氟胞嘧啶耐药性最强,其耐药率为56．5％。结论 白假丝酵母菌和近平滑假丝酵母菌是慢性前列腺炎假丝酵母菌感染的优势菌种,假丝酵母菌株最敏感的药物是两性霉素B和制霉菌素。     

白假丝酵母菌生物膜的研究进展

随着医疗水平的不断发展,越来越多的医疗操作、医疗设备和药物可能导致人体正常的微生物平衡被打破,使得机会致病菌白假丝酵母菌的感染呈现逐年上升的趋势。白假丝酵母菌在宿主或医疗器械表面形成生物膜的能力是一个十分关键的毒力因素。生物膜可以帮助白假丝酵母菌成功逃避宿主免疫并产生较强的耐药性,从而导致难治性真菌感染。本文从白假丝酵母菌生物膜的形成过程、生物膜相关的主要基因和影响生物膜毒力的因素3个方面介绍近年来的研究进展,为进一步研究白假丝酵母菌生物膜的形成机制提供参考。     

pH及氧气对白念珠菌菌丝形成的影响

目的探讨pH值和氧气对白念珠菌菌丝形成的影响。方法通过调节Muller—Hinton液体培养基的pH值和去除培养基中的氧气来观察白念珠菌的生长曲线、倍增时间和菌丝形成率的变化。结果在无氧气的液体培养基中,白念珠菌生长缓慢,不能产生菌丝结构,只有酵母细胞形成。生长曲线的延缓期内各组没有明显差异,而在生长的对数期pH3和pH4的条件下念珠菌生长速度明显慢于pH5、pH6、pH7、pH8和pH9。菌丝形成率在pH3、pH4和pH5条件下〈20％,而在pH6、pH7、pH8和pH9条件下可高达70％。结论厌氧条件抑制白念珠菌的菌丝形成,只形成酵母细胞。白念珠菌在pH3—9的范围内均能生长,偏酸性环境有利于白念珠菌酵母形成,偏碱性的环境有助于菌丝的形成。     

Evaluation of the API ZYM system and RPMI agar plates supplemented with Tween 40 for detection of lipolytic enzymes of Candida spp

Lipolytic activity of 40 strains of Candida spp. was tested on API ZYM system and on RPMI agar plates supplemented with 1% Tween 40. Lipolytic activity was indicated by opaque zones around the inoculum cylindrical holes were punched in the medium. Clearing of the medium around the bacterial colonies indicated that an isolate produce lipase. Only 4 (21.1%) strains of C. albicans, and 3 (14.1%) strains of non-C. albicans which hydrolyzed 2-naftylomirystylan by use of the API ZYM system was observed. In contrast, 16 (78.9%) strains of C. albicans and 17 (80.7%) strains of non-C. albicans produced lipases on the agar plate using RPMI agar plates supplemented with 1.0% Tween 40. Determination oflipase activities with the API ZYM system were in no agreement with lipase tests in RPMI supplemented with Tween 40. Our study verify greater usefulness of RPMI supplemented with Tween 40 for detection of lipolytic enzymes of Candida species in comparison to the API ZYM.     

Utility of a pre-optimized kit for random amplified polymorphic DNA in typing Candida albicans

The utility of a pre-optimized kit for random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was assessed in typing diverse strains of Candida albicans from epidemiologically unrelated inpatients (interpatient analysis) and in detecting clonal variations that maybe present within individual patient isolates (intrapatient analysis). Stool samples from inpatients were cultured on Inhibitory Mold agar. Nine individual colonies from all patients with > or =9 colonies of C. albicans (n = 18) were selected, frozen, and karyotyped using CHEF genomic DNA plug kits and CHEF-DRIII. Each of the selected colonies was then analyzed by RAPD, utilizing the selected kit, with 6 primers. Interpatient analysis revealed 9 karyotypes and 17 RAPD composites. RAPD discrimination was significantly better (p < 0.001). Intrapatient analysis revealed 34 (21%) and 33 (20.4%) variants among 162 colonies tested by RAPD and karyotyping, respectively. The results were discordant in 25 variants, all with differences of 1-3 bands. These results illustrate that this pre-optimized kit for RAPD provides excellent discrimination of genetically unrelated strains. Its performance in delineating subtle clonal differences was comparable with karyotyping; both methods failed to detect all minor genetic variations. The ease of use and quick turnaround time of this kit offer a practical and reliable method for typing diverse strains of C. albicans, but may be inadequate for assessing microevolution.     

Inhibition of Histoplasma capsulatum by Candida albicans and Other Yeasts on Sabouraud''s Agar Media

The inhibition of growth of Histoplasma capsulatum by Candida albicans and other yeasts on Sabouraud's agar was investigated. Histoplasma (yeast-phase inoculum) was grown alone and in mixtures with yeasts at 25 C for 4-week periods. As few as 10 colonies of C. albicans completely inhibited the growth of approximately 50,000 potential colonies of Histoplasma. The pH was determined in cultures of 36 colonies of Candida on media containing 1, 2, and 4% glucose by spotting the agar with pH indicators. A drop in the pH became noticeable in all three media about the 3rd day of incubation, and a pH of 3.5 was reached in about 7 days. Subsequently, the pH remained almost stationary in the 4% glucose-agar, rose slowly in the 2% glucose-agar, and rose sharply in the 1% glucose-agar. The growth of Histoplasma was inhibited completely at pH 4 and below. When the pH was controlled in mixed cultures, some growth of Histoplasma was obtained. Substitution of maltose for glucose delayed the development of acidity and allowed the appearance of numerous mycelial colonies in the presence of Candida. This growth was arrested as soon as the medium became acid. Four other species which also acidified the Sabouraud's medium effected similar inhibition. It was thus shown that severe and prolonged acidity produced by some yeasts in the sugar-rich Sabouraud's media is alone sufficient to completely inhibit Histoplasma during the standard 4-week incubation of specimens such as sputum.     

The distribution frequency of Candida species in the genitourinary tract among symptomatic individuals in Nigerian cities

A clinical survey was carried out in seven cities in the southern part of Nigeria to determine the relative distribution of genitourinary Candida species in symptomatic patients reporting for diagnosis and treatment. Seven Candida species were identified using the CHROMagar Candida method and the API 20C System. Candida species were represented by Candida glabrata (33.7%), Candida albicans (20.1%), Candida tropicalis (18%), Candida guilliermondii (17.8%) Candida pseudotropicalis (5%), Candida parapsilosis (5%), and C. albicans var.stellatoidea (1.2%). The distribution of these species among the various age groups (15-20, 21-25, 26-30, 31-35, 36-40 and 41 plus years) was statistically insignificant. Out of the 517 positive samples, 182 (35%) were found in the age group 26-30 years, while age 41 plus had the lowest frequency (1.2%). The results presented show that C. albicans, usually reported to be the most frequently isolated species, is not the main species in the cities studied. With C. glabrata in preponderance, the finding supports recent studies reporting that several pathogenic non-C. albicans species are now being frequently isolated. The level of social activities, such as drug abuse and sexual promiscuity, may be important in the distribution frequency of Candida species in different age groups and locations.     

Deletion of the Candida albicans G-protein-coupled receptor, encoded by orf19.1944 and its allele orf19.9499, produces mutants defective in filamentous growth

Filamentous growth of Candida albicans occurs in response to a variety of environmental signals. The C. albicans gene orf19.1944 and its allele orf19.9499 are identical and are predicted to encode an 823-residue, 7-transmembrane-domain protein that has all the expected features of a G-protein-coupled receptor. The protein is 20.9% identical to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Gpr1p receptor that signals both glucose availability and nitrogen limitation. Deletion of both copies of the gene in C. albicans abolished filamentation by colonies embedded in rich media (YPS, YPGal, and YPGlu), whereas mutants carrying a single copy of the gene were indistinguishable from the parental strain under these conditions. On medium containing low concentrations of ammonia (SLAD and SLAM media), surface colonies of both the homozygous deletion mutants and the mutants carrying a single copy of the gene were defective in filamentation. Serum-induced germ tube formation was unaffected by deletion of this gene, as was filamentation of the mutants growing on the surface of solid Spider medium at 37 degrees C or embedded in solid Spider medium at 25 degrees C. The protein encoded by orf19.1944 and orf19.9499 has a role in filamentation by both surface and embedded colonies, presumably as a sensor of environmental cues.