title: Issues in identifying germ tube positive yeasts by conventional methods.
abstract: Candida speciation is vital for epidemiology and management of candidiasis. Nonmolecular conventional methods often fail to identify closely related germ tube positive yeasts from clinical specimens. The present study was conducted to identify these yeasts and to highlight issues in conventional versus molecular methods of identification. A total of 98 germ tube positive yeasts from high vaginal swabs were studied over a 12-month period. Isolates were examined with various methods including growth at 42 °C and 45 °C on Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA), color development on CHROMagar Candida medium, chlamydospore production on corn meal agar at 25 °C, carbohydrate assimilation using ID 32C system, and polymerase chain reaction using a single pair of primers targeting the hyphal wall protein 1 (Hwp1) gene. Of all the isolates studied, 97 were molecularly confirmed as C. albicans and one isolate was identified as C. dubliniensis. No C. africana was detected in this study. The molecular method used in our study was an accurate and useful tool for discriminating C. albicans, C. dubliniensis, and C. africana. The conventional methods, however, were less accurate and riddled with many issues that will be discussed in further details.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC), Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Atta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yazdanpanah
authors.forename: Tzar Mohd Nizam
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Khaithir
mesh_terms: D020029:Base Pairing; D002175:Candida / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D016533:Mycological Typing Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D010641:Phenotype; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal
keywords: C. africana; C. albicans; C. dubliniensis; Hwp1; Malaysia