Virulence of Candida spp. Isolates From Patients With Recurrent Vulvovaginal Candidosis Is Associated With the Number of Episodes.

IF 4.1 2区医学 Q1 DERMATOLOGY

Mycoses Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI:10.1111/myc.70031

Jeiser Marcelo Consuegra-Asprilla, Felipe Taborda, Verónica Pérez, Brajhan Torres, Carolina Rodríguez-Echeverri, Julián E Muñoz, Ángel González

{"title":"Virulence of Candida spp. Isolates From Patients With Recurrent Vulvovaginal Candidosis Is Associated With the Number of Episodes.","authors":"Jeiser Marcelo Consuegra-Asprilla, Felipe Taborda, Verónica Pérez, Brajhan Torres, Carolina Rodríguez-Echeverri, Julián E Muñoz, Ángel González","doi":"10.1111/myc.70031","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Background: Recurrent vulvovaginal candidosis (RVVC) has been associated with increased antifungal resistance. Recently, we reported that Candida isolates from Colombian patients with RVVC did not show an increase in antifungal resistance.Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the virulence of Candida isolates from patients with RVVC.Methods: A total of 40 Candida isolates were evaluated (37 C. albicans and 3 C. lusitaniae ). C. albicans isolates were divided into two groups based on the number of VVC episodes in patients per year: Group 1 (four to seven episodes; n = 26) and Group 2 (≥ eight episodes; n = 11). The XTT assay was used to assess biofilm formation. Galleria mellonella larvae were used for survival analysis and fungal load assessment, and the qPCR technique to determine the expression of the PRA1 gene.Results: It was observed that C. lusitaniae and C. albicans isolates from patients with ≥ eight VVC episodes per year exhibited a greater capacity to form biofilms compared to those from patients with four to seven VVC episodes. Moreover, in the G. mellonella model, larvae inoculated with isolates from RVVC patients exhibited approximately 80% mortality. Similarly, larvae infected with C. albicans from patients who experienced ≥ eight VVC episodes showed a significantly higher fungal load compared to the other evaluated groups; likewise, the expression of the PRA1 gene was significantly higher in isolates from patients with ≥ eight VVC episodes.Conclusion: These results indicate that Candida isolates from patients with RVVC exhibit a high degree of virulence and suggest that virulence may be one of the mechanisms explaining recurrence rather than antifungal resistance itself.","PeriodicalId":18797,"journal":{"name":"Mycoses","volume":"68 2","pages":"e70031"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1000,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Mycoses","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/myc.70031","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"DERMATOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: Recurrent vulvovaginal candidosis (RVVC) has been associated with increased antifungal resistance. Recently, we reported that Candida isolates from Colombian patients with RVVC did not show an increase in antifungal resistance.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the virulence of Candida isolates from patients with RVVC.

Methods: A total of 40 Candida isolates were evaluated (37 C. albicans and 3 C. lusitaniae ). C. albicans isolates were divided into two groups based on the number of VVC episodes in patients per year: Group 1 (four to seven episodes; n = 26) and Group 2 (≥ eight episodes; n = 11). The XTT assay was used to assess biofilm formation. Galleria mellonella larvae were used for survival analysis and fungal load assessment, and the qPCR technique to determine the expression of the PRA1 gene.

Results: It was observed that C. lusitaniae and C. albicans isolates from patients with ≥ eight VVC episodes per year exhibited a greater capacity to form biofilms compared to those from patients with four to seven VVC episodes. Moreover, in the G. mellonella model, larvae inoculated with isolates from RVVC patients exhibited approximately 80% mortality. Similarly, larvae infected with C. albicans from patients who experienced ≥ eight VVC episodes showed a significantly higher fungal load compared to the other evaluated groups; likewise, the expression of the PRA1 gene was significantly higher in isolates from patients with ≥ eight VVC episodes.

Conclusion: These results indicate that Candida isolates from patients with RVVC exhibit a high degree of virulence and suggest that virulence may be one of the mechanisms explaining recurrence rather than antifungal resistance itself.

查看原文本刊更多论文

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Mycoses 医学-皮肤病学

CiteScore

10.00

自引率

8.20%

发文量

143

审稿时长

6-12 weeks

期刊介绍： The journal Mycoses provides an international forum for original papers in English on the pathogenesis, diagnosis, therapy, prophylaxis, and epidemiology of fungal infectious diseases in humans as well as on the biology of pathogenic fungi. Medical mycology as part of medical microbiology is advancing rapidly. Effective therapeutic strategies are already available in chemotherapy and are being further developed. Their application requires reliable laboratory diagnostic techniques, which, in turn, result from mycological basic research. Opportunistic mycoses vary greatly in their clinical and pathological symptoms, because the underlying disease of a patient at risk decisively determines their symptomatology and progress. The journal Mycoses is therefore of interest to scientists in fundamental mycological research, mycological laboratory diagnosticians and clinicians interested in fungal infections.