Aspartyl Proteinase and Phospholipase Activities of Candida albicans Isolated From Oropharyngeal Candidiasis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients

• Published in: Jundishapur journal of microbiology Vol. 13; no. 9; pp. 1 - 8
• Main Authors: Ilkhanizadeh-Qomi, Mohsen, Nejatbakhsh, Sepideh, Jahanshiri, Zahra, Razzaghi-Abyaneh, Mehdi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ahvaz Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences 01.09.2020
• Subjects: Candidiasis; Enzymes; Fungal infections; Gene expression; Head & neck cancer; Phospholipase; Proteinase; Virulence; Iran; France; United States > US
• ISSN: 2008-3645; 2008-4161
• DOI: 10.5812/jjm.105200

Background: Candida albicans is one of the most important members of the human normal flora that can cause opportunistic fungal infections. Hydrolytic enzymes are one of the main virulence factors in the pathogenesis of Candida species. Objectives: This study was carried out to determine proteolytic activities, and their related gene expressions in C. albicans isolates obtained from oropharyngeal candidiasis in head and neck cancer patients. Methods: Thirty-two C. albicans clinical isolates were included in this study. Secreted aspartyl protease and phospholipase activities were analyzed by appropriate agar media and precipitation zones. The expression levels of SAP1, 3 and PLB1, 2 genes were evaluated by real-time PCR. Results: All the 32 isolates exhibited proteinase activity while 28 of them showed phospholipase activity. All the strains possessed all SAPs genes; however, PLBs genes were not expressed in four isolates. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrated that the clinical strains of C. albicans had strong proteolytic activity and high expression levels of the pertaining genes.