DISTRIBUTION OF SECRETED ASPARTYL PROTEINASES IN VIRULENT CANDIDA ALBICANS STRAINS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20328137Abstract
In immunocompromised people, Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen that causes both superficial and systemic infections. Secreted aspartyl proteinases (SAPs) family of ten proteins (SAP1-10) are one of its main virulence factors and play a crucial role in pathogenicity, immunological evasion, and host tissue invasion. The purpose of this study was to invitro assessment of SAP in pathogenic strains of Candida albicans isolated from clinical material. Oral swabs, vaginal swabs, urine, blood, and wound specimens were among the 100 clinical samples taken from hospitalized patients. CHROMagar and germ tube tests were used to identify isolates. Proteolytic activity was measured using Pz values in bovine serum albumin (BSA) agar medium to determine SAP generation. Among 100 samples, 43 isolates were identified as Candida albicans. 21 (50%) isolates displayed strong SAP production, 14 (33.3%) isolates showed moderate activity, while 5 (11.9%) isolates showed weak activity, and 2 (4.8%) had no SAP activity. Higher SAP production was significantly correlated with isolates recovered from invasive infections, according to statistical analysis (p<0.05). These results indicate that the synthesis of SAP is a significant virulence marker in pathogenic strains of Candida albicans and may increase the severity of the disease.
