Article
Relationship between the antifungal susceptibility profile and the production of virulence-related hydrolytic enzymes in Brazilian clinical strains of Candida glabrata
Registro en:
FIGUEIREDO-CARVALHO, Maria Helena Galdino et al. Relationship between the antifungal susceptibility profile and the production of virulence-related hydrolytic enzymes in Brazilian clinical strains of Candida glabrata. Mediators of Inflammation, v. 2017, 1-10, 2017.
0962-9351
10.1155/2017/8952878
2314-6141
Autor
Figueiredo-Carvalho, Maria Helena Galdino
Ramos, Lívia de Souza
Barbedo, Leonardo Silva
Oliveira, Jean Carlos Almeida de
Santos, André Luis Souza dos
Almeida-Paes, Rodrigo
Zancopé-Oliveira, Rosely Maria
Resumen
Candida glabrata is a facultative intracellular opportunistic fungal pathogen in human infections. Several virulence-associated attributes are involved in its pathogenesis, host-pathogen interactions, modulation of host immune defenses, and regulation of antifungal drug resistance. This study evaluated the in vitro antifungal susceptibility profile to five antifungal agents, the production of seven hydrolytic enzymes related to virulence, and the relationship between these phenotypes in 91 clinical strains of C. glabrata. All C. glabrata strains were susceptible to flucytosine. However, some of these strains showed resistance to amphotericin B (9.9%), fluconazole (15.4%), itraconazole (5.5%), or micafungin (15.4%). Overall, C. glabrata strains were good producers of catalase, aspartic protease, esterase, phytase, and hemolysin. However, caseinase and phospholipase in vitro activities were not detected. Statistically significant correlations were identified between micafungin minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and esterase production, between fluconazole and micafungin MIC and hemolytic activity, and between amphotericin B MIC and phytase production. These results contribute to clarify some of the C. glabrata mechanisms of pathogenicity. Moreover, the association between some virulence attributes and the regulation of antifungal resistance encourage the development of new therapeutic strategies involving virulence mechanisms as potential targets for effective antifungal drug development for the treatment of C. glabrata infections.