Use of peptide nucleic acid-fluorescence in situ hybridization for definitive, rapid identification of five common Candida species.

We investigated a 2.5-h peptide nucleic acid-fluorescence in situ hybridization (PNA-FISH) assay with five Candida species-specific probes to identify Candida colonies and compared it to standard 2-h to 5-day phenotypic identification methods. Suspensions were made and slides were prepared and read for fluorescence per the manufacturer's instructions. Sensitivity was 99% (109/110), and specificity was 99% (129/130). PNA-FISH can rapidly identify those Candida species isolated most frequently.