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  1. Chin VK, Foong KJ, Maha A, Rusliza B, Norhafizah M, Chong PP
    Int J Mol Sci, 2014;15(8):14848-67.
    PMID: 25153636 DOI: 10.3390/ijms150814848
    Different murine species differ in their susceptibility to systemic infection with Candida albicans, giving rise to varied host immune responses, and this is compounded by variations in virulence of the different yeast strains used. Hence, this study was aimed at elucidating the pathogenesis of a clinical C. albicans isolate (HVS6360) in a murine intravenous challenge model by examining the different parameters which included the counts of red blood cells and associated components as well as the organ-specific expression profiles of cytokines and chemokines. Kidneys and brains of infected mice have higher fungal recovery rates as compared to other organs and there were extensive yeast infiltration with moderate to severe inflammation seen in kidney and brain tissues. Red blood cells (RBCs) and haemoglobin (Hb) counts were reduced throughout the infection period. Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), chemokines and cytokine transcription profiles were varied among the different organs (kidney, spleen and brain) over 72 h post infections. Transcription of most of the PRRs, cytokines and chemokines were suppressed at 72 h post infection in spleen while continuous expression of PRRs, cytokines and chemokines genes were seen in brain and kidney. Reduction in red blood cells and haemoglobin counts might be associated with the action of extracellular haemolysin enzyme and haeme oxygenase of C. albicans in conjunction with iron scavenging for the fungal growth. Renal cells responsible for erythropoietin production may be injured by the infection and hence the combined effect of haemolysis plus lack of erythropoietin-induced RBC replenishment leads to aggravated reduction in RBC numbers. The varied local host immune profiles among target organs during systemic C. albicans infection could be of importance for future work in designing targeted immunotherapy through immunomodulatory approaches.
  2. Chin VK, Foong KJ, Maha A, Rusliza B, Norhafizah M, Chong PP
    Biomed Rep, 2014 Nov;2(6):869-874.
    PMID: 25279161
    Local cytokine production is a significant indicator for disease pathogenesis or progression. Previous studies on cytokine production during systemic Candida albicans (C. albicans) infection were solely on kidney or single cell type interaction with C. albicans. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the early cytokine expression of various target organs (kidney, spleen and brain) over a 72-h time course during systemic C. albicans infection. The local cytokine profiles of the target organs during systemic C. albicans infection were measured by cytometric bead array and ELISA analysis. The results demonstrated that interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-2 were statistically significant (P<0.05) in the spleen at 24 and 72 h post-infection, whereas in the kidney, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were statistically significant (P<0.05) at 24 and 72 h post-infection and CXCL-1 and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) were statistically significant (P<0.05) at 72 h post-infection. In the brain, IL-6 and TNF-α were statistically significant (P<0.05) at 24 and 72 h post-infection, whereas TGF-β was statistically significant (P<0.05) at 72 h post-infection. These findings demonstrate that host immune responses were varied among target organs during systemic C. albicans infection. This could be important for designing targeted immunotherapy against this pathogen through immunomodulatory approaches in future exploratory research.
  3. 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.
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