title: AmBisome and Amphotericin B inhibit the initial adherence of Candida albicans to human epithelial cell lines, but do not cause yeast detachment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Candida biofilms with reduced susceptibility to conventional antifungals are sensitive to lipid formulations of amphotericin B (AMB). We examined the effect of the liposomal AMB formulation, AmBisome, and free AMB on the adherence of C. albicans to HeLa cervical carcinoma and HSC-3 oral squamous cell carcinoma cells.
  
  
  METHODS
  HeLa and HSC-3 cells were incubated with three oral isolates of C. albicans either in the presence of AmBisome or AMB, or pre-incubated with yeasts and subsequently exposed to the drug. The effect of the drugs on the viability of HeLa and HSC-3 cells was determined by an Alamar Blue assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Following a 1-h incubation in the presence of AmBisome, at 1-256 microg/ml, the adherence of C. albicans to HeLa and HSC-3 cells was reduced considerably. For example at 16 microg/ml, adherence was diminished by approximately 66% in HeLa and by approximately 36% in HSC-3 cells. The susceptibility of cell-associated Candida to antifungals was decreased markedly. The reduction in adherence was between 3.3 and 13.7%, when compared to the drug-free controls. AmBisome was not toxic in the range 1-256 microg/ml, while free AMB was not toxic at 1 and 4 microg/ml to HeLa cells and at 1, 4 and 16 microg/ml to HSC-3 cells.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AmBisome inhibited candidal attachment when present during the "adherence phase" but did not cause detachment of cell-associated yeasts. The effect of AmBisome on candidal adherence to HSC-3 cells was less inhibitory than that observed with HeLa cells. Candidal adherence to epithelial cells is significantly reduced when antifungal polyenes are present during the "adherence phase", while cell-associated Candida is resistant to antifungals in terms of adherence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthodontics, K. Marcinkowski University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dorocka-Bobkowska
authors.forename: Nejat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Düzgüneş
authors.forename: Krystyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Konopka
mesh_terms: D000666:Amphotericin B / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018441:Biofilms; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D002448:Cell Adhesion / Q000187:drug effects*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; C068538:liposomal amphotericin B; D000666:Amphotericin B