Diagnosis of candidiasis and candidemia or invasive candida infection

Abstract

The use of an antibody to a C albicans cell wall antigen or to a solubilized phosphopeptidomannan (PPM) fraction of the cell wall of C albicans, or preferably a combination of an IgG2 antibody to a phosphopeptidomannan (PPM) fraction of the cell wall of C albicans, and an IgG1 or IgG3 antibody to a C albicans cell wall antigen in the diagnosis of candidiasis or invasive candidiasis is disclosed. Also diagnostic tests are disclosed.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to the use of Candida albicans cell wall antigens for serological diagnosis of systemic candidiasis, including IgG sub-class antibodies to C albicans cell wall antigens. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Invasive candidosis is difficult to diagnose and is the cause of substantial morbidity and mortality in immunosuppressed patients. The clinical symptoms are often vague and conventional blood culturing is often negative [de Repentigny L, Kuykendall R. J, Chandler F. W, Broderson J. R, Reiss E. Comparison of serum mannan, arabinitol, and mannose in experimental disseminated candidiasis. J Clin Microbiol, 1984. 19(6): p. 804-12; Gutierrez J, Maroto C, Piedrola G, Martin E, Perez J. A. Circulating Candida antigens and antibodies: useful markers of candidemia. J Clin Microbiol, 1993. 31(9): p. 2550-2; Jones, J. M., Laboratory diagnosis of invasive candidiasis. Clin Microbiol Rev, 1990. 3(1): p. 32-45]. Laboratory diagnosis of ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The present invention relates to the use of Candida albicans cell wall antigens for serological diagnosis of systemic candidiasis. The invention provides a more sensitive and specific method for diagnosing systemic candidiasis by using antibodies to C. albicans cell wall antigens. The invention also includes the use of latex agglutination and other techniques for detecting anti-Candida antibodies. The invention improves the diagnosis of deep candidiasis, which is difficult to detect using conventional methods."

Problems solved by technology

Invasive candidosis is difficult to diagnose and is the cause of substantial morbidity and mortality in immunosuppressed patients.

Since mannan is a major antigenic component of the cell wall, different chemical and enzymatic methods have been used to extract mannan from C. albicans, but these methods have limitations.

Thus the extraction procedures may modify the mannan product and alter the antigenicity.

Antibody tests have been less useful mainly because anti-Candida antibodies are often present in healthy individuals which is considered to be a consequence of immunization from Candida in the commensal flora (Odds, F. C., and E. G. Evans. 1980.

Furthermore, the antibody response of Candida-infected patients is often impaired by the underlying condition, particularly in non-surgical patients.

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