Molecular identification of some candida spp. isolated from intensive care unit patients and evaluation of their sensitivity to antifungals

Abstract

Candida species found in intensive care units (ICU) exhibit a higher incidence and greater resistance compared to those unrelated to the ICU. Both phenotypic and genotypic methods were employed to identify strains of oral candidiasis, including drug-resistant variants commonly present in ICU settings. The molecular identification of multi-drug-resistant strains in the intensive care unit utilized the ITS-ribosomal RNA genes. The species identified included Nakaseomyces glabratus, Candida dubliniensis, and Candida albicans. These strains have been registered in the Genbank database. Identification of these strains was conducted using the VITEK2 AST-YS08 Card. The results indicate that the predominant isolate was C. albicans, accounting for 56.67% of the isolates, while Non-albicans isolates included Nakaseomyces glabratus (33.33%) and C. dubliniensis (10%).  Investigation has been conducted on the formation of chlamydospores and the examination of temperature tolerance. Susceptibility testing of isolates using the VITEK2 AST-YS08 card revealed that Nakaseomyces glabratus and C. dubliniensis, isolated from the intensive care unit, exhibited higher resistance to six antifungal drugs. On the other hand, C. albicans demonstrated sensitivity to all six antifungal drugs tested, namely amphotericin B, caspofungin, flucytosine, fluconazole, micafungin, and voriconazole.