The aim of this study was to evaluate the adherence capability to HeLa cells, the susceptibility to killer toxins and the in vitro susceptibility to antifungal agents (eTest? method - AB Biodisk, Solna, Sweden) of 9 Candida dubliniensis isolates recovered from HIV+ and AIDS patients. The adherence test was strongly positive for strain ATCC 777 and positive for all other strains. Typing by killer toxins revealed two different biotypes among the 9 isolates studied: 888 and 688. Only biotype 688 (ATCC 777) was susceptible to the K2 toxin. There was a significant inverse correlation between adherence and killer toxin susceptibility (r = -0.8525 - p = 0.0035). No strains presented resistance to fluconazole, itraconazole, ketoconazole, voriconazole, flucytosine or amphotericin-B. With the exception of ATCC 777, all the other isolates presented similar behavior.
Candida; Cell adhesion; Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome; HIV
