Open AccessDisseminated Candida infection syndrome in heroin addicts--dominance of a single Candida albicans biotype
Author(s) -
Frank C. Odds,
A. Del Palacio-Hernanz,
Jesus La Cuadra,
José Pardo Sánchez
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
journal of medical microbiology/journal of medical microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1473-5644
pISSN - 0022-2615
DOI - 10.1099/00222615-23-3-275
Subject(s) - candida albicans , microbiology and biotechnology , serotype , heroin , corpus albicans , biology , medicine , immunology , drug , pharmacology
Among 21 intravenous heroin abusers with cutaneous and ocular manifestations of disseminated Candida infection, a single C. albicans strain type (serotype A, biotype 153/7) was isolated from skin lesions in 14 cases. This suggests that central contamination of the heroin with C. albicans is less likely to be the source of infection than an endogenous source, and that one particular strain type is either better adapted than others to grow in the lemon juice used as a heroin solvent, or more likely than others to cause the specific pathology seen in these patients.