title: Persistence of Candida species in the respiratory tract of cystic fibrosis patients.
abstract: It is still controversial as to whether Candida spp. are transient or persistent colonizers of the respiratory tract of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. We conducted a prospective study of 56 CF patients over a 30 month period to assess the distribution and persistence of different Candida spp. In vitro antifungal susceptibility testing was performed and the C. albicans isolates were typed with CARE-2 hybridization and other Candida spp. by RAPD-PCR for persistence and transmission. We found that the mean persistence of the most frequent Candida spp. was >or= 9 months. In patients from whom more than 10 isolates were recovered, we noted that at least 30% were genetically related and transmission of C. albicans in siblings was observed. The majority of all isolates were susceptible to all antifungals tested. We concluded that there was long-term persistence of Candida in the respiratory tract of CF patients and that transmission between siblings may be one possible means of acquisition. Whether long-term colonization with Candida strains can contribute to the chronic infection and inflammation in the CF lung requires further investigation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Würzburg Josef-Schneider-Strasse 1, D-97080 Würzburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Michaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Muthig
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hebestreit
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Ziegler
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seidler
authors.forename: Frank-Michael C
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Müller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002175:Candida / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000382:microbiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000150:complications*; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D016533:Mycological Typing Techniques; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019105:Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique; D012137:Respiratory System / Q000382:microbiology*; D055815:Young Adult