title: Candida albicans in a neonatal intensive care unit: antifungal susceptibility and genotypic analysis.
abstract: Invasive candidiasis in neonates has become an increasing problem over the past decade in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). From August 2005 to January 2006, six invasive candidiasis occurred in neonates in NICU of the S. Matteo hospital of Pavia. The study focused on the species involved and their in vitro antifungal susceptibility. Genotyping was conducted to determine clonal relatedness. A total of 22 yeasts were isolated from different biological samples of neonates during six months. The infants were infected with or colonized by Candida albicans and six patients developed C. albicans deep infections. The genotyping of the transposable intron region of C. albicans strains showed that they belonged to the genotype A (17 isolates) and genotype B (5 isolates). The RAPD confirmed these results. These data suggest that nosocomial transmission of C. albicans could be take into account as a mode of acquisition by neonates in NICUs at this hospital.
authors.affiliation: Department S.M.E.C., Section of Microbiology, University of Pavia, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Asticcioli
authors.forename: Elisabetta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Nucleo
authors.forename: Gianfranco
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Perotti
authors.forename: Cecilia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Matti
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sacco
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pagani
mesh_terms: D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics*; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology; D005800:Genes, Fungal / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D007438:Introns / Q000235:genetics; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D013045:Species Specificity