Genotyping and fluconazole susceptibility of Candida albicans strains from patients with vulvovaginal candidiasis in Jos, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective To investigate the fluconazole susceptibility of the genotypes of Candida albicans ( C. albicans) strains isolated from patients with vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria. Methods A total of one hundred and seventy seven (177) Candida isolates were examined. The strains were obtained from 320 female patients with VVC and were identified using both phenotypic and molecular methods. Their genotypes were determined, based on the presence or absence of a transposable intron in the 25S rDNA. Results Eighty four (84) strains were recognized as being C. albicans and all the 84 C. albicans strains resulted to be genotype A. Antifungal susceptibility testing showed that 13 of those isolates (15.48%) were resistant to fluconazole. Conclusions Based on these data, we concluded that C. albicans genotype A was common among VVC patients in Jos, and resistance to fluconazole is quite high. To our knowledge, this is the first study that reports C. albicans genotypes in Jos and its resistance to fluconazole.