Open AccessLow virulence of a morphological Candida albicans mutant
Author(s) -
DiezOrejas Rosalı́a,
Molero Gloria,
Rı́osSerrano Inmaculada,
Vázquez Amalia,
Gil Concha,
Nombela César,
SánchezPérez Miguel
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.1999.tb13677.x
Subject(s) - virulence , mutant , candida albicans , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , corpus albicans , strain (injury) , gene , virulence factor , genetics , anatomy
The virulence of Candida albicans 92′, a morphological mutant unable to filament, was assayed in an experimental model of systemic candidiasis in three strains of mice with different susceptibilities to the infection. The mortality parameters studied pointed to the low virulence of this mutant strain. Study of the fungal load of C. albicans 92′ in kidneys and brain revealed the presence of low numbers of CFUs and a high percentage of clearance, particularly in the brain. Adhesion studies demonstrated a reduced capability of the mutant to adhere to human epithelial cells. This strain can be considered a potential tool for cloning genes involved in virulence.