title: Low levels of antigenic variability in fluconazole-susceptible and -resistant Candida albicans isolates from human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients with oropharyngeal candidiasis.
abstract: Three serial isolates of Candida albicans were obtained by direct swab or by oral saline rinses from each of five human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients with recurrent oropharyngeal candidiasis. Genotyping techniques confirmed the presence of a persistent strain in multiple episodes from the same patient, which was different from the strains isolated from other patients. Fluconazole susceptibility was determined by both an agar dilution method and the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards macrobroth procedure. In four of these patients the strains developed fluconazole resistance, and in one patient the strain remained susceptible. The different isolates were propagated as yeast cells on a synthetic medium, and their cell wall proteinaceous components were extracted by treatment with beta-mercaptoethanol. Protein and mannoprotein components present in the extracts were analyzed by electrophoresis, immunoblotting, and lectin-blotting techniques. The analysis showed a similar composition, with only minor qualitative and quantitative differences in the polypeptidic and antigenic patterns associated with the cell wall extracts from serial isolates from the same patient, as well as those from different strains isolated from different patients. Use of monospecific antibodies generated against two immunodominant antigens during candidiasis (enolase and the 58-kDa fibrinogen-binding mannoprotein) demonstrated their expression in all isolates tested. Overall, the antigenic makeup of C. albicans strains remained constant during the course of infection and was not affected by development of fluconazole resistance. In contrast to previous reports, the low degree of antigenic variability observed in this study may be due to the fact that the isolates were obtained from a highly homogeneous population of patients and to the uniformity in techniques used for the isolation, storage, and culture of the different strains, as well as extraction methodologies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78284-7881, USA. ribot@uthscsa.edu
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Lopez-Ribot
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: McAtee
authors.forename: W R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Kirkpatrick
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: La Valle
authors.forename: T F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Patterson
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000940:Antigenic Variation; D000946:Antigens, Fungal / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002180:Candidiasis, Oral / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology / Q000276:immunology; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D015725:Fluconazole / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes / Q000032:analysis; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D008623:Mercaptoethanol; D010608:Pharyngeal Diseases / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000821:virology; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D012965:Sodium Chloride
chemical_list: D000908:Antibodies, Fungal; D000935:Antifungal Agents; D000946:Antigens, Fungal; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; C025363:mannoproteins; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D008623:Mercaptoethanol; D015725:Fluconazole; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase