Gastrointestinal Disease Associated with Non-albicans Candida Species in Six Birds

• Published in: Journal of avian medicine and surgery Vol. 33; no. 4; pp. 413 - 418
• Main Authors: Donnelly, Kyle A, Wellehan, James F. X, Quesenberry, Katherine
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Association of Avian Veterinarians 09.12.2019
• Subjects: Amazona; Animals; Antifungal agents; avian; Bird Diseases - drug therapy; Bird Diseases - microbiology; Birds; Candida albicans; Candida glabrata; Candida glabrata - isolation & purification; Candida krusei; candidiasis; Candidiasis - drug therapy; Candidiasis - microbiology; Candidiasis - veterinary; Clinical Report; CLINICAL REPORTS; Cockatoos; Columbidae; Comorbidity; Diarrhea; DNA; emerging disease; Fatal Outcome; Feces - microbiology; Female; Gastrointestinal diseases; Gastrointestinal Diseases - drug therapy; Gastrointestinal Diseases - microbiology; Gastrointestinal Diseases - veterinary; Gastrointestinal hemorrhage; Ionization; Macaws; Male; Mass spectrometry; Metronidazole; Parrots; Psittaciformes; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization - veterinary; Spectroscopy; Candida albicans; emerging disease; Candida glabrata; Candida krusei; candidiasis; avian
• ISSN: 1082-6742; 1938-2871
• DOI: 10.1647/2018-419

A non-albicans Candida species was identified in 6 birds exhibiting clinical signs associated with gastrointestinal disease. The clinical disease signs noted in these 6 birds included diarrhea, regurgitation, and melena, and were considered concurrent or identified secondary to other comorbidities. Candida glabrata was identified in a yellow-naped Amazon parrot (Amazona auropalliata), a ring-necked dove (Streptopelia capicola), a blue-and-gold macaw (Ara ararauna), and 2 cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus). Candida krusei was identified in a white-crowned parrot (Pionus senilis). Fungal culture and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry identification was correlated with results of fecal and/or crop Gram's stains, and DNA sequencing was used in one case. Three cases resolved after treatment, 2 birds died, and 1 was lost to follow-up. Non-albicans Candida infections are an emerging issue in human health care and are known to have an increased resistance to antifungal drugs. Similar to Candida albicans, these non-albicans Candida species are often identified in patients that have a history of prior antibiotic exposure. Recent data in human medicine describe a shift in species distribution away from C albicans dominance and toward other species, including C glabrata and C krusei. Both species are considered normal flora within the human and bird mycobiota and may emerge to cause disease, especially when the normal gastrointestinal environment has been disrupted.