Nineteen clinical isolates of Candida albicans and C. dubliniensis were isolated from patients (majority of them HIV-positive) in Slovakia, Brazil, Thailand and Japan. Species discrimination was performed by using growth on CHROMagar Candida, commercial biochemical set API 20C AUX, germ-tube test in human serum, growth at 42 and 45 degrees C on Sabouraud-dextrose agar as well as on CHROMagar Candida, assimilation of D-xylose and methyl alpha-D-glucoside by glass-tube test, and production of chlamydospores. These tests were completed by PCR using Cd-oligo2/F and Cd-oligo2/R primer pair specific for C. dubliniensis. Six clinical isolates were confirmed to be C. dubliniensis, remaining 13 strains were determined as C. albicans. The use of conventional method showed that the determination is markedly influenced by personal evaluation suggesting the necessity of using the combination of many tests to obtain correct results comparing with accurate and rapid PCR assay. For discrimination between C. albicans and C. dubliniensis we recommend the combination of primo-cultivation on CHROMagar, followed by germ-tube test and PCR.

• MeSH
• Candida albicans growth & development   isolation & purification   MeSH
• Candida growth & development   isolation & purification   MeSH
• HIV Seropositivity microbiology   MeSH
• Culture Media MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Polymerase Chain Reaction methods   MeSH
• Spores, Fungal physiology   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Comparative Study MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Culture Media MeSH

The collection wild-type strain of Candida albicans was used to obtain auxotrophic and colony-morphology mutants by 'nitrosoguanidine' treatment. Intraspecific protoplast fusion induced by Ca(2+)-poly(ethyleneglycol) was carried out in various pairings between the auxotrophic strain producing smooth colonies and containing blastospores and the colony-morphology mutants containing a mixture of blastospores and pseudohyphae or only hyphae. Hybrids exhibiting full or partial complementation were obtained when mutants producing smooth colonies and colony-morphology variants of different origins were fused. The mutation responsible for the colony-morphology character (if various types of colony morphomutants were crossed) proved to be recessive or semidominant. Representative hybrids exhibited elevated DNA contents as measured by flow cytometry. To illustrate various cell types, and especially the intermediate one (never observed in natural isolates), a preparation method was further developed for scanning electron microscopic studies.

• MeSH
• Candida albicans genetics   growth & development   MeSH
• DNA, Fungal genetics   MeSH
• Crosses, Genetic MeSH
• Culture Media MeSH
• Methylnitronitrosoguanidine pharmacology   MeSH
• Microscopy, Electron, Scanning MeSH
• Mutation * MeSH
• Polyethylene Glycols pharmacology   MeSH
• Flow Cytometry MeSH
• Genetic Complementation Test MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Names of Substances
• DNA, Fungal MeSH
• Culture Media MeSH
• Methylnitronitrosoguanidine MeSH
• Polyethylene Glycols MeSH

In the last few years mycoses have been caused by fungi formerly considered to be harmless for humans. They cause diseases of plants and insects; some of them are also used in the industry. They are now usually called "emerging fungi". We investigated this flora with respect to their potential to cause infections in hospitals. These fungi are present in the air, on medical objects and instrumentation, in the respiratory tract and on the hands of hospital staff; other sources have been identified in the use of iatrogenic methods. Mycotic diseases, their risk factors, their clinical pictures, and spectra of agents were analyzed in 1990-2000; the results were compared with data in the literature. Transplantations were the most frequent risk factors, fungemia and abscess the most frequent clinical picture and filamentous fungi (genera Absidia, Acremonium, Alternaria, Apophysomyces, Aspergillus, Bipolaris, Cladophialophora, Cunninghamella, Exserohilum, Fusarium, Chaetomium, Chrysosporium, Lecythophora, Ochroconis, Paecilomyces, Pythium, Rhizopus, Scedosporium, Scopulariopsis) were the most frequent agents of nosocomial infections. These filamentous fungi and also some yeasts (genera Candida, Cryptococcus, Trichosporon) bring about different clinical syndromes in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients.

• MeSH
• Aspergillosis etiology   MeSH
• Immunocompromised Host MeSH
• Cross Infection drug therapy   microbiology   prevention & control   MeSH
• Critical Illness MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Mycoses drug therapy   microbiology   prevention & control   MeSH
• Opportunistic Infections drug therapy   microbiology   prevention & control   MeSH
• Risk Factors MeSH
• Transplantation adverse effects   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH