Displaying publications 41 - 60 of 107 in total

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  1. Chew SY, Ho KL, Cheah YK, Ng TS, Sandai D, Brown AJP, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2019 02 26;9(1):2843.
    PMID: 30808979 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-39117-1
    The human fungal pathogen Candida glabrata appears to utilise unique stealth, evasion and persistence strategies in subverting the onslaught of host immune response during systemic infection. However, macrophages actively deprive the intracellular fungal pathogen of glucose, and therefore alternative carbon sources probably support the growth and survival of engulfed C. glabrata. The present study aimed to investigate the role of the glyoxylate cycle gene ICL1 in alternative carbon utilisation and its importance for the virulence of C. glabrata. The data showed that disruption of ICL1 rendered C. glabrata unable to utilise acetate, ethanol or oleic acid. In addition, C. glabrata icl1∆ cells displayed significantly reduced biofilm growth in the presence of several alternative carbon sources. It was also found that ICL1 is crucial for the survival of C. glabrata in response to macrophage engulfment. Disruption of ICL1 also conferred a severe attenuation in the virulence of C. glabrata in the mouse model of invasive candidiasis. In conclusion, a functional glyoxylate cycle is essential for C. glabrata to utilise certain alternative carbon sources in vitro and to display full virulence in vivo. This reinforces the view that antifungal drugs that target fungal Icl1 have potential for future therapeutic intervention.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/immunology; Candidiasis/microbiology*
  2. Masri SN, Noor SM, Nor LA, Osman M, Rahman MM
    Pak J Med Sci, 2015;31(3):658-61.
    PMID: 26150863 DOI: 10.12669/pjms.313.7072
    Pregnant women are susceptible to vaginal colonization and infection by yeast. The purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence of Candida spp in high vaginal swabs of pregnant women and their antifungal susceptibility.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal
  3. Jainlabdin MH, Batra A, Sánchez Paredes E, Hernández Hernández F, Fu G, Tovar-Torres J
    Sci Rep, 2019 10 11;9(1):14692.
    PMID: 31604994 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-51198-6
    Invasive candidiasis is one of the most common nosocomial fungal infections worldwide. Delayed implementation of effective antifungal treatment caused by inefficient Candida diagnosis contributes to its notoriously high mortality rates. The availability of better Candida diagnostic tools would positively impact patient outcomes. Here, we report on the development of a single-tube, dual channel pentaplex molecular diagnostic assay based on Multiplex Probe Amplification (MPA) technology. It allows simultaneous identification of C. auris, C. glabrata and C. krusei, at species-level as well as of six additional albicans and non-albicans pathogenic Candida at genus level. The assay overcomes the one-channel one-biomarker limitation of qPCR-based assays. Assay specificities are conferred by unique biomarker probe pairs with characteristic melting temperatures; post-amplification melting curve analysis allows simple identification of the infectious agent. Alerting for the presence of C. auris, the well-characterised multi-drug resistant outbreak strain, will facilitate informed therapy decisions and aid antifungal stewardship. The MPA-Candida assay can also be coupled to a pan-Fungal assay when differentiation between fungal and bacterial infections might be desirable. Its multiplexing capacity, detection range, specificity and sensitivity suggest the potential use of this novel MPA-Candida assay in clinical diagnosis and in the control and management of hospital outbreaks.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Invasive/diagnosis*; Candidiasis, Invasive/drug therapy; Candidiasis, Invasive/microbiology
  4. Illyaaseen Z, Ngeow YF, Yap SF, Ng HF
    Malays J Pathol, 2021 Apr;43(1):55-61.
    PMID: 33903306
    Candida albicans is an important opportunistic fungal pathogen capable of causing fatal systemic infections in humans. Presently in Malaysia, there is little information available on the genetic diversity of this organism and trends in behavioural characteristics. In this project, three genotyping methods: 25S rDNA genotyping, Alternative Lengthening of Telomerase (ALT) sequence typing and Multi-Locus Sequence Typing (MLST) were applied to study the genetic diversity of strains from infected hospital in-patients and asymptomatic individuals in the community. The results showed that, with the 25S rDNA genotyping, as in other parts of the world, the most common genotype was type A which accounted for approximately 70% of the 111 isolates tested. Further typing with the ALT sequence showed type 3 to be the most common in the isolates tested. MLST analysis revealed many possibly novel sequence types, as well as a statistically significant association between pathogenicity and a group of closely related isolates, most of which were from hospital samples. Further work on genotypes associated with enhanced virulence will help to clarify the value of genotyping for clinical and epidemiological investigations.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis
  5. Nathan PS, Ramalingam S, Jegathesan M
    Med J Malaysia, 1977 Sep;32(1):82-4.
    PMID: 345072
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis
  6. Teh CL, Wan SA, Ling GR
    Clin Rheumatol, 2018 Aug;37(8):2081-2086.
    PMID: 29667100 DOI: 10.1007/s10067-018-4102-6
    Infection is a major cause of morbidity and mortality among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). To describe the pattern of serious infections in patients with SLE and to identify the predictors of infection-related mortality among SLE patients with serious infections, we prospectively studied all SLE patients who were hospitalized with infections in Sarawak General Hospital during 2011-2015. Demographic data, clinical features, and outcomes were collected. Cox regression analysis was carried out to determine the independent predictors of infection-related mortality. There were a total of 125 patients with 187 episodes of serious infections. Our patients were of multiethnic origins with female predominance (89.6%). Their mean age was 33.4 ± 14.2 years. The patients had a mean disease duration of 66.8 ± 74.0 months. The most common site of infection was pulmonary (37.9%), followed by septicemia (22.5%). Gram-negative organisms (38.2%) were the predominant isolates within the cohort. There were 21 deaths (11.2%) during the study period. Independent predictors of infection-related mortality among our cohort of SLE patients were flare of SLE (HR 3.98, CI 1.30-12.21) and the presence of bacteremia (HR 2.54, CI 0.98-6.59). Hydroxychloroquine was protective of mortality from serious infections (HR 9.26, CI 3.40-25.64). Pneumonia and Gram-negative organisms were the predominant pattern of infection in our SLE cohort. The presence of flare of SLE and bacteremia were independent prognostic predictors of infection-related mortality, whereas hydroxychloroquine was protective of infection-related mortality among SLE patients with serious infections.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/microbiology; Candidiasis/mortality; Candidiasis/epidemiology*
  7. Cheong I, Tan SC, Wong WH, Zainuddin RH, Yassin MS
    Family Physician, 1994;6:9-11.
    A study was conducted to determine the prevalence of fungal infection in cancer patients warded at the Hospital Kuala Lumpur. There were 138 patients included in the study: 74 with haematological malignancies and 64 with solid tumours. Serological results showed that for candidiasis 16/138 (11.5%) and 10/134 (7.5%) were greater than 1:8 reactive for antigen and antibodies respectively. For aspergillosis, 29/122 (23.8%) sera were antigen reactive. Only 1/133 each (O.SO/o) was reactive for cryptococcal antigen and antibody. The types of malignancies, the age of the patient, a history of neutropenia, the duration of the cancer, the number of courses of chemotherapy or radiotherapy were not predictive of fungal infections. In view of the high serological evidence of fungal infection and the lack of a reliable diagnostic test, empirical antifungal treatment must be considered in all febrile neutropenic cancer patients.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis
  8. Khalili V, Shokri H, Md Akim A, Khosravi AR
    Malays J Med Sci, 2016 May;23(3):64-71.
    PMID: 27418871
    Candida albicans (C. albicans) has several virulence factors, in particular heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90), which is expressed by Hsp90 gene. The purposes of this study were to assess the expression of Hsp90 gene in clinical and control isolates of C. albicans obtained from different geographical regions (Malaysia and Iran), different temperatures (25°C, 37°C and 42°C) and mice with candidiasis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis
  9. Chew SY, Cheah YK, Seow HF, Sandai D, Than LT
    J Appl Microbiol, 2015 May;118(5):1180-90.
    PMID: 25688886 DOI: 10.1111/jam.12772
    This study investigates the antagonistic effects of the probiotic strains Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1 and Lactobacillus reuteri RC-14 against vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC)-causing Candida glabrata.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal/microbiology*
  10. Lim CS, Rosli R, Seow HF, Chong PP
    Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis, 2012 Jan;31(1):21-31.
    PMID: 21544694 DOI: 10.1007/s10096-011-1273-3
    The ubiquitous Candida spp. is an opportunistic fungal pathogen which, despite treatment with antifungal drugs, can cause fatal bloodstream infections (BSIs) in immunocompromised and immunodeficient persons. Thus far, several major C. albicans virulence factors have been relatively well studied, including morphology switching and secreted degradative enzymes. However, the exact mechanism of Candida pathogenesis and the host response to invasion are still not well elucidated. The relatively recent discovery of the quorum-sensing molecule farnesol and the existence of quorum sensing as a basic regulatory phenomenon of the C. albicans population behavior has revolutionized Candida research. Through population density regulation, the quorum-sensing mechanism also controls the cellular morphology of a C. albicans population in response to environmental factors, thereby, effectively placing morphology switching downstream of quorum sensing. Thus, the quorum-sensing phenomenon has been hailed as the 'missing piece' of the pathogenicity puzzle. Here, we review what is known about Candida spp. as the etiological agents of invasive candidiasis and address our current understanding of the quorum-sensing phenomenon in relation to virulence in the host.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Invasive/microbiology*
  11. Khodavandi A, Alizadeh F, Aala F, Sekawi Z, Chong PP
    Mycopathologia, 2010 Apr;169(4):287-95.
    PMID: 19924565 DOI: 10.1007/s11046-009-9251-3
    Candidiasis is a term describing infections by yeasts from the genus Candida, and the type of infection encompassed by candidiasis ranges from superficial to systemic. Treatment of such infections often requires antifungals such as the azoles, but increased use of these drugs has led to selection of yeasts with increased resistance to these drugs. In this study, we used allicin, an allyl sulfur derivative of garlic, to demonstrate both its intrinsic antifungal activity and its synergy with the azoles, in the treatment of these yeasts in vitro. In this study, the MIC(50) and MIC(90) of allicin alone against six Candida spp. ranged from 0.05 to 25 microg/ml. However, when allicin was used in combination with fluconazole or ketoconazole, the MICs were decreased in some isolates. Our results demonstrated the existing synergistic effect between allicin and azoles in some of the Candida spp. such as C. albicans, C. glabrata and C. tropicalis, but synergy was not demonstrated in the majority of Candida spp. tested. Nonetheless, In vivo testing needs to be performed to support these findings.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/microbiology
  12. Tzar MN, Shamim AS
    Med J Malaysia, 2009 Mar;64(1):61-4.
    PMID: 19852325 MyJurnal
    We reviewed cases of candidaemia at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre from 1st January 2005 to 30th June 2006. All blood cultures positive for Candida species or its teleomorphs within the study period were identified and antifungal susceptibility testing was performed. Out of 50 blood isolates, 20 (40%) were identified as Candida albicans, 16 (32%) C. tropicalis, five (10%) C. parapsilosis, three (6%) C. famata, two (4%) C. glabrata, two (4%) Pichia ohmeri, one (2%) C. krusei and one (2%) P. etchell/carsonii. Susceptibility to amphotericin B was 100%, fluconazole 90%, itraconazole 40%, ketoconazole 88%, 5-flucytosine 98% and voriconazole 98%.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/epidemiology*
  13. Tay ST, Chai HC, Na SL, Ng KP
    Mycopathologia, 2005 Apr;159(3):325-9.
    PMID: 15883714
    The genotypes of 221 recent isolates of Candida albicans from various clinical specimens of 213 patients admitted to the University Malaya Medical Centre, Malaysia was determined based on the amplification of a transposable intron region in the 25 S rRNA gene. The analyses of 178 C. albicans isolated from nonsterile clinical specimens showed that they could be classified into three genotypes: genotype A (138 isolates), genotype B (38 isolates) and genotype C (2 isolates). The genotyping of 43 clinical isolates from sterile specimens showed that they belonged to genotype A (29 isolates), genotype B (10 isolates), genotype C (2 isolates) and genotype D (2 isolates). The overall distribution of C. albicans genotypes in sterile and nonsterile specimens appeared similar, with genotype A being the most predominant type. This study reported the identification of C. dubliniensis (genotype D) in 2 HIV-negative patients with systemic candidiasis, which were missed by the routine mycological procedure. The study demonstrated the genetic diversity of clinical isolates of C. albicans in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/epidemiology*
  14. Ng KP, Madasamy M, Saw TL, Baki A, He J, Soo-Hoo TS
    Mycopathologia, 1999 10 26;144(3):135-40.
    PMID: 10531679
    The distribution of Candida species was examined using 1114 yeasts isolated from various clinical specimens. The isolates were identified by germ tube test, hyphal/pseudohyphae and chlamydoconidia production and carbohydrate assimilation test using ten carbohydrates (glucose, sucrose, trehalose, cellobiose, arabinose, galactose, mannitol, raffinose, lactose and maltose). Among the 1114 isolates studied, 9 species of Candida were identified and the relative frequency of isolation was C. albicans (44.2%), C. parapsilosis (26.0%), C. tropicalis (17.7%), C. glabrata (9.6%), C. krusei (1.2%), C. rugosa (0.6%), C. guilliermondii (0.2%), C. lusitaniae (0.08%) and C. kefyr (0.08%). Non-C. albicans was the most common Candida species isolated from blood, respiratory system, urine and skin. The isolate from vaginal swabs was predominantly C. albicans. 82.2% of C. glabrata and 64.2% of C. krusei isolated in this study were from vaginal swabs.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/microbiology
  15. Rachagan SP, Sivanesaratnam V
    Med J Malaysia, 1986 Mar;41(1):30-2.
    PMID: 3796344
    A preliminary report on the short-term use of Tioconazole for vaginal candidiasis is presented. The cure rate was found to be approximately 90% in mild degrees of the disease, with good patient compliance and minimal side effects. However no conclusion can be drawn for moderate or severe cases of the condition.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal/drug therapy*
  16. Chong PP, Lee YL, Tan BC, Ng KP
    J Med Microbiol, 2003 Aug;52(Pt 8):657-66.
    PMID: 12867559
    The aims of this study were to compare the genetic relatedness of: (i) sequential and single isolates of Candida strains from women with recurrent vaginal candidiasis (RVC); and (ii) Candida strains from women who had only one episode of infection within a 1-year period. In total, 87 isolates from 71 patients were cultured, speciated and genotyped by random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis. Patients were categorized into three groups, namely those with: (i) a history of RVC from whom two or more yeast isolates were obtained (group A); (ii) a history of RVC from whom only a single isolate was obtained (group B); and (iii) a single episode of vaginal candidiasis within a 1-year period (group C). Six yeast species were detected: Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Candida lusitaniae, Candida famata, Candida krusei and Candida parapsilosis. Interestingly, the prevalence of non-albicans species was higher in group A patients (50 %) than in patients in groups B (36 %) or C (18.9 %). Eighty RAPD profiles were observed, with a total of 61 polymorphic PCR fragments of distinct sizes. Clustering analysis showed that, overall, the majority of patients in group A had recurrent infections caused by highly similar, but not identical, sequential strains [mean pairwise similarity coefficient (S(AB)) = 0.721 +/- 0.308]. The range of mean S(AB) values for intergroup comparisons for C. albicans isolates alone was 0.50-0.56, suggesting that there was no significant relatedness between strains from different groups. Genetic similarity of C. albicans isolates from patients in group A was lower than that of C. albicans isolates from patients in group C (mean S(AB) = 0.532 +/- 0.249 and 0.636 +/- 0.206, respectively); this difference was statistically significant (P = 0.036). These results demonstrate that the cause of recurrent infections varies among individuals and ranges between strain maintenance, strain microevolution and strain replacement; the major scenario is strain maintenance with microevolution. They also show that C. albicans strains that cause recurrent infections are less similar to each other than strains that cause one-off infections, suggesting that the former may represent more virulent subtypes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal/microbiology*
  17. Amran F, Aziz MN, Ibrahim HM, Atiqah NH, Parameswari S, Hafiza MR, et al.
    J Med Microbiol, 2011 Sep;60(Pt 9):1312-1316.
    PMID: 21459913 DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.027631-0
    The in vitro antifungal susceptibilities of 159 clinical isolates of Candida species from patients with invasive candidiasis in Kuala Lumpur Hospital, Malaysia, were determined against amphotericin B, fluconazole, voriconazole, itraconazole and caspofungin. The most common species were Candida albicans (71 isolates), Candida parapsilosis (42 isolates), Candida tropicalis (27 isolates) and Candida glabrata (12 isolates). The susceptibility tests were carried out using an E-test. The MIC breakpoints were based on Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute criteria. Amphotericin B and voriconazole showed the best activities against all the isolates tested, with MIC(90) values of ≤1 µg ml(-1) for all major species. Only one Candida lusitaniae isolate was resistant to amphotericin B, and all the isolates were susceptible to voriconazole. In total, six isolates were resistant to fluconazole, comprising two isolates of C. albicans, two of C. parapsilosis, one C. tropicalis and one C. glabrata, and all of these isolates showed cross-resistance to itraconazole. The MIC(90) of itraconazole was highest for C. glabrata and C. parapsilosis. Caspofungin was active against most of the isolates except for five isolates of C. parapsilosis. The MIC(90) of caspofungin against C. parapsilosis was 3 µg ml(-1). In conclusion, amphotericin B remains the most active antifungal agent against most Candida species except for C. lusitaniae. Voriconazole is the best alternative for fluconazole- or itraconizole-resistant isolates. Although five of the C. parapsilosis isolates showed in vitro resistance to caspofungin, more clinical correlation studies need to be carried out to confirm the significance of these findings. Currently, despite the increase in usage of antifungals in our hospitals, especially in the management of febrile neutropenia patients, the antifungal-resistance problem among clinically important Candida isolates in Kuala Lumpur Hospital is not yet worrying. However, continued antifungal-susceptibility surveillance needs to be conducted to monitor the antifungal-susceptibility trends of Candida species and other opportunistic fungal pathogens.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Invasive/microbiology*
  18. Chin VK, Foong KJ, Maha A, Rusliza B, Norhafizah M, Ng KP, et al.
    Trop Biomed, 2013 Dec;30(4):654-62.
    PMID: 24522136 MyJurnal
    This study was aimed at determining the phospholipase and haemolysin activity of Candida isolates in Malaysia. A total of 37 Candida clinical isolates representing seven species, Candida albicans (12), Candida tropicalis (8), Candida glabrata (4), Candida parapsilosis (1), Candida krusei (4), Candida orthopsilosis (1) and Candida rugosa (7) were tested. In vitro phospholipase activity was determined by using egg yolk plate assay whereas in vitro haemolysin activity was tested by using blood plate assay on sheep blood Sabouraud's dextrose agar (SDA) enriched with glucose. Phospholipase activity was detected in 75% (9 out of 12) of the C. albicans isolates. Among the 25 non- C. albicans Candida isolates, phospholipase activity was detected in only 24% of these isolates. The phospholipase activity of C. albicans was significantly higher than that of the non- C. albicans Candida isolates (P=0.002). Haemolysin activity was detected in 100% of the C. albicans, C. tropicalis, C. glabrata, C. krusei, C. parapsilosis, and C. orthopsilosis isolates while 75% of the C. krusei isolates and 12.3% of the C. rugosa isolates showed haemolysin activity. The haemolytic activity of C. albicans was significantly higher than that of the non- C. albicans Candida isolates (P=0.0001).The findings in this study indicate that C. albicans isolates in Malaysia may possess greater virulence potential than the non-albicans species.
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/microbiology*
  19. Chaubal T, Bapat R
    Am J Med, 2018 09;131(9):e371-e372.
    PMID: 29730363 DOI: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2018.04.020
    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis, Oral/diagnosis*
  20. Greco G, Di Piazza S, Chan J, Zotti M, Hanna R, Gheno E, et al.
    Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther, 2020 Mar;29:101575.
    PMID: 31614222 DOI: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2019.10.010
    BACKGROUND: A large number of systemic diseases can be linked to oral candida pathogenicity. The global trend of invasive candidiasis has increased progressively and is often accentuated by increasing Candida albicans resistance to the most common antifungal medications. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising therapeutic approach for oral microbial infections. A new formulation of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5%ALA) in a thermosetting gel (t) (5%ALA-PTt) was patented and recently has become available on the market. However, its antimicrobial properties, whether mediated or not by PDT, are not yet known. In this work we characterised them.

    METHODS: We isolated a strain of C. albicans from plaques on the oral mucus membrane of an infected patient. Colonies of this strain were exposed for 1 24 h, to 5%ALA-PTt, 5%ALA-PTt buffered to pH 6.5 (the pH of the oral mucosa) (5%ALA-PTtb) or not exposed (control). The 1 h-exposed samples were also irradiated at a wavelength of 630 nm with 0.14 watts (W) and 0.37 W/cm2 for 7 min at a distance of <1 mm.

    RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The 5% ALA-PTt preparation was shown to be effective in reducing the growth of biofilm and inoculum of C. albicans. This effect seems to be linked to the intrinsic characteristics of 5%ALA-TPt, such acidic pH and the induction of free radical production. This outcome was significantly enhanced by the effect of PDT at relatively short incubation and irradiation times, which resulted in growth inhibition of both treated biofilm and inoculum by ∼80% and ∼95%, respectively.

    Matched MeSH terms: Candidiasis/drug therapy
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