Antifungal susceptibility and phenotypic virulence markers of Candida species isolated from Nepal.

Objective: Candida species are part of the commensal microflora in many anatomical sites of the human body; however, breach in the integrity of the body part and impaired immunity of the host can lead to invasive candidiasis. A number of virulence determinants could contribute towards its pathogenicity. Thus we attempted to evaluate the in vitro expression of different virulence factors among clinical isolates of Candida species and assayed their susceptibility patterns against a range of antifungal agents.

Result: Of the total of 71 isolates we obtained, 48 (67.6%) were Candida albicans, 11 (15.49%) Candida tropicalis, 09 (12.67%) Candida glabrata and 03 (4.22%) were Candida krusei. Proteinase, phospholipase and esterase production could be revealed amongst 43 (60.56%), 44 (61.97%) and 49 (69.01%) isolates respectively. None of the isolates showed DNAase activity. Fifty-five (77.39%) isolates were biofilm producers, and 53 (74.6%) exhibited high cell surface hydrophobicity.