ABSTRACT
Background and Purpose: The increasing rate of opportunistic infections caused by Candida and other yeasts is becoming a major health concern worldwide. However, systematic data on the epidemiology and the yeast species infections in Malaysia is still limited. In this regard, the present research aimed to identify pathogenic yeasts utilizing an economically practical and easily available molecular technique and evaluate the prevalence of pathogenic yeasts in a Malaysian tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: Yeast isolates were collected from Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital, Kedah, Malaysia, from October 2020 to October 2021. Molecular identification of the isolates was performed by one enzyme-based polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Results: Candida albicans was the most prevalent species, accounting for 120 isolates (59%) in total. The most prevalent non-albicans Candida species were C. tropicalis (n=33, 16%), C. krusei (Pichia kudriavzevii) (n=12, 5.8%), C. glabrata (n=12, 5.8%), and C. parapsilosis (n=6, 3%). Other unusual Candida species were C. guilliermondii (2), C. metapsilosis (2), C. orthopsilosis (1), C. lusitaniae (1), C. rugosa (1), C. haemulonii (1), C. bracarensis (1), and C. dubliniensis (1). Moreover, Talaromyces marneffei (1), Kodamaea ohmeri (1), Cryptococcus neoformans (3), and Cryptococcus laurentii (1) were among the other yeasts identified. Conclusion: The Molecular technique used in this study identified 96% of isolates, including mixed species. According to the findings, the most prevalent species are C. albicans, C. tropicalis, C. krusei, and C. glabrata.
ABSTRACT
Background and Purpose: Invasive candidiasis is one of the most common systemic mycoses, and studies have shown mixed yeast infections. Malaysia lacks mixed yeast culture data. Materials and Methods: Yeast isolates were collected in Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital, North Malaysia, from October 2020 to October 2021. Chromogenic Candida differential agar media and PCR-RFLP were used to identify yeast species. Results: A total of 206 yeast isolates were collected from different body sites of patients. The majority of the yeast isolates (n=104) were obtained from the urine. Other isolates were extracted from blood (n=52), vaginal swabs (n=45), ear discharge (n=2), tracheal aspirate (n=2), tissue (n=2), skin (n=1), nail (n=1), sputum (n=1), and cerebrospinal fluid (n=1). In total, 200 yeast samples were identified as single species, and six isolates were a mixture of Candida species. Conclusion: Malaysia lacks accurate epidemiological data on mixed yeast infections. We identified all samples to the species level, including mixed yeast cultures, using the MspI enzyme and PCR-RFLP.
