Ivana Maldonado1, Silvana Cataldi2, Claudia Garbasz3, Silvia Relloso4, Pablo Striebeck5, Liliana Guelfand6, Laura López Moral7. 1. Hospital Alemán, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Electronic address: ivanam27@gmail.com. 2. Hospital General de Agudos C. G. Durand, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. 3. Hospital General de Agudos I. Pirovano, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. 4. Centro de Educación Médica e Investigaciones Clínicas Norberto Quirno (CEMIC), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. 5. Hospital Alemán, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. 6. Hospital General de Agudos J. A. Fernández, Argentina. 7. Hospital Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires Cosme Argerich, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Invasive fungal infections are increasing, and Candida yeasts are the main cause. Species other than Candida albicans are becoming more frequent, and some of them may have variable patterns of susceptibility to antifungal agents, making it important to identify them correctly. Conventional identification methods used by most laboratories may present with drawbacks. Mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has emerged as an alternative method. AIMS: The aim of this study was to evaluate the concordance of the identification, at species level, by conventional methods (API) and MALDI-TOF MS. METHODS: The following species and number of isolates were studied: Candida parapsilosis (28), Candida glabrata (34), Candida krusei (24), Candida tropicalis (45), Candida guilliermondii (30), C. albicans (28), Candida dubliniensis (6), Candida kefyr (1), and Candida lipolytica (1) from the strain collection of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires Mycology Network (RMCABA). The strains C. parapsilosis 22019, C. glabrata 90030, C. krusei 6258 and C. albicans 68548 from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) were also included. Discrepancies were resolved by genotyping. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The direct concordance between the conventional identification method and MALDI-TOF MS was 92.5% (186/201).
BACKGROUND: Invasive fungal infections are increasing, and Candidayeasts are the main cause. Species other than Candida albicans are becoming more frequent, and some of them may have variable patterns of susceptibility to antifungal agents, making it important to identify them correctly. Conventional identification methods used by most laboratories may present with drawbacks. Mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has emerged as an alternative method. AIMS: The aim of this study was to evaluate the concordance of the identification, at species level, by conventional methods (API) and MALDI-TOF MS. METHODS: The following species and number of isolates were studied: Candida parapsilosis (28), Candida glabrata (34), Candida krusei (24), Candida tropicalis (45), Candida guilliermondii (30), C. albicans (28), Candida dubliniensis (6), Candida kefyr (1), and Candida lipolytica (1) from the strain collection of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires Mycology Network (RMCABA). The strains C. parapsilosis 22019, C. glabrata 90030, C. krusei 6258 and C. albicans 68548 from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) were also included. Discrepancies were resolved by genotyping. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The direct concordance between the conventional identification method and MALDI-TOF MS was 92.5% (186/201).