Micafungin for Candida Albicans Pacemaker-Associated Endocarditis: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

We report on the treatment with micafungin of a pacemaker-associated endocarditis due to Candida albicans. Antifungal therapy was able to reduce vegetation size from 5 to 1 cm making possible the transvenous removal of the device without a high risk of pulmonary embolism. Noteworthy, a high micafungin concentration was documented into the lead vegetation (10 μg/g of vegetation tissue) and this may have contributed to the striking size reduction of vegetation.     

Candida Endocarditis Treated with 5-Fluorocytosine

Three patients with endocarditis due to Candida species were treated with 5-fluorocytosine. One had endocarditis imposed on senile aortic sclerosis and survived and two had infections on prosthetic valves and died. In the latter two patients chemotherapy failed to eradicate the infection and was associated with marrow depression and possibly hepatic necrosis.     

Millimeter-Wave Effects on Candida Albicans Cells

In preliminary measurements, Candida albicans cultures exposed to 1 kHz square-wave-modulated microwaves at 72 GHz exhibited a significantly reduced number of colony-forming units in comparison with nonirradiated controls. To study whether the same effect could also be caused by continuous-wave (CW) irradiation, sedimented cells were exposed to either 1 kHz square-wave-modulated or CW microwaves at 72 GHz, with the same peak power. CW-exposed cells showed a higher growth rate (about 25%), whereas a reduction of about 15% was seen in cells exposed to square-wave-modulated microwaves in comparison with sham-exposed controls.     

白念珠菌基因分型的相关研究

白色念珠菌定植于大多数人群的口腔中,在一定条件下可成为优势菌种而导致感染。基因分型是近年来白念分子生物学研究中的一个热点,随着医学科学技术的发展,由于深部真菌感染比例不断增加,分子生物学方法已经越来越广泛的应用于临床真菌病的研究中,从而为控制白念感染及为早期诊断、治疗提供基础。本文综述了限制性片段长度多态性、随机扩增多态性DNA分析、ITS区域序列分析等分子生物学技术在白念珠菌基因分型方面的相关研究,比较了它们的优缺点,并且讨论了将基因分型研究应用于临床诊断、治疗及开发新型抗真菌药物的发展趋势和广阔前景。认为目前更倾向于多种分型方法联合应用,并借助计算机软件进行分析,但是仍需进一步探索。     

Epidemiology of Candida Endocarditis

Current Fungal Infection Reports - Candida endocarditis is a rare infection that for many years has been associated with injection drug users in the community setting. Over the last...     

Epidemiological investigations of oral Candida Albicans

Using a gargle-rinse technique, the oral cavities of 103 volunteers were sampled and cultured for the presence ofCandida albicans. Thirty-six (33.95 %) were positive forC. albicans, including 14 females and 22 males. Sixty-four subjects, including negative controls, were placed on treatment regimes of a pre-sleep gargle-rinse with either sterile distilled water (W) or Cepacol® Mouthwash/Gargle (C). The possible effects of ambient temperature, diet, age, sex, and mouthwash use on oralC. albicans levels are illustrated and discussed, including some evidence for familial endemicity. On simulated sporadic or continuous mouthwash use, some individuals showed statistically significant reductions in oralC. albicans flora, whereas others had biologically significant reductions that were not confirmed statistically. A few originally negative individuals developed non-persistent lowC. albicans counts on one or two days. Total bacterial counts were made for 32 subjects, for most of whom biologically significant reductions were obtained, although the counts were highly variable and erratic. The data support the concept that a reduction in oralC. albicans does not lead to an increase in total bacterial flora, and vice versa.with the technical assistance ofAlyce R. Schmitt Paper 741, Department of Botany, The Ohio State University. This investigation was supported by a research grant form the Wm. S. Merrell Co., Cinninnati, O.