LECTURE - Candida albicans Flashcards
unicellular fungi that reproduce by budding or fission
yeast
yeast infections can be…
endogenous (almost exclusively endogenous; carrying infection yourself then cause infection) or exogenous
T or F. Yeasts are opportunists
T!
Candida species as normal flora
GI tract, oral cavities, and vagina
Candidosis
disease caused by Candida spp. (albicans mainly)
an emerging, antibiotic-resistant Candida organism
C. auris
agar for C. albicans
Sabouraud agar
C. albicans colonies
dry, pasty, white, and opaque
- budding cells that can produce pseudohyphae (produced in tissues; cant necessarily ee nice, unicellular buds) and chlamydospores depending on growth temp and medium on which they are grown
__% to ___% of healthy people have organisms in yeast as part of normal flora
30 to 50
T or F. Most C. albicans infections are exogenous
F, endogenous!
Three conditions to predispose to Candida albicans infections
- compromised skin, excessive moisture, friction; invasive procedures like indwelling catheters
- defects in Th1 mediated immunity (AIDS, cancer, etc.)
- iatrogenic therapies
> loss of normal flora via broad-spectrum antibiotics
> damage to GI, GU, resp tract and loss of neutrophils due to cancer chemotherapy
> changes in hormone levels such as use of BC
three main types of infections in C. albicans
- mucocutaneous
- cutaneous
- systemic candidiasis
mucocutaenous candidiasis
- most common
- thrush, AIDS-associated oropharyngeal candidosis, vulvovaginal candidosis (vaginitis)
cutaneous candidiasis
skin and nails, prolonged exposure to moisture and heat, secondary to bacterial infection or loss of normal flora
systemic candidiasis
- worst one!!
- frequently fatal; nasty to get rid of once it has established; neutrophils VERY important (C. albicans not resistant to phagocytosis if they can be opsonized)
- immunocompromised host; neutropenic, undergoing chemotherapy
- often diagnosed post-mortem (SO MONITORING IS V IMPORTANT)