Tobacco agar, a new medium for differentiating Candida dubliniensis from Candida albicans.
Isolates of Candida dubliniensis may be misidentified as Candida albicans in microbiological laboratories if only the germ tube and/or the chlamydospore test is used for identification to the species level. In this study, we have evaluated the efficacy of tobacco agar for the differentiation of C. dubliniensis from C. albicans. On this medium at 28 degrees C, all 30 C. dubliniensis isolates produced yellowish-brown colonies with hyphal fringes and abundant chlamydospores, whereas 54 C. albicans isolates formed smooth, white-to-cream-colored colonies with no chlamydospore production. This medium provides a simple tool for presumptive differentiation of C. dubliniensis from C. albicans.
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Safat, Kuwait. ziauddin@hsc.kuniv.edu.kw
Zia U
ZU
Khan
Suhail
S
Ahmad
Eiman
E
Mokaddas
Rachel
R
Chandy
D000362:Agar; D002175:Candida / Q000145:classification* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000145:classification* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000382:microbiology; D003470:Culture Media; D006801:Humans; D016533:Mycological Typing Techniques / Q000379:methods; D013045:Species Specificity; D014026:Nicotiana
D003470:Culture Media; D000362:Agar