Cellular immunity in acquired candidiasis of the palate.

Abstract

abstract— In vitro cellular hypersensitivity and agglutinating antibody to C. albicans was assessed in 180 subjects of whom 55 were patients with Candida‐induced denture stomatitis (25 with the generalized simple and 30 with the granular type) whereas 16 had traumainduced lesions in the palatal mucosa. Patients with other candidal manifestations, such as cutaneous candidiasis (5), vaginal candidiasis (3), Candida leukoplakia (1), chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis (2), and appropriate controls were included in the study. Using the leukocyte migration test, cellular hypersensitivity to C. albicans was demonstrated in 76% of the patients with the generalized simple type of denture stomatitis and in most of the patients with vaginal or cutaneous candidiasis. However, only 28% of the patients with the granular type of denture stomatitis and none of those with mucocutaneous candidiasis showed significant inhibition of migration. Upon antifungal therapy of 13 patients, cellular hypersensitivity was restored. The increase of the cellular immune response to C. albicans was most pronounced for the granular type of denture stomatitis. In the infected patients an inverse relationship was demonstrated between cellular hypersensitivity and agglutinating antibody titer to C. albicans. The immediate increase in leukocyte response to C. albicans that was demonstrated after antifungal therapy was taken as indirect evidence that a Candida infection may lead to a suppression of the systemic cellular immune response to C. albicans.