Abstract
Objective: Oral candidiasis is an infection that occurs in the oral cavity and is caused by candida species, often Candida albicans. This infection commonly occurs in a condition of immunosuppression caused by dexamethasone. Due to the side effects of antifungal therapy, developing a standardized immunosuppressed animal model to induce oral candidiasis for new therapies is required. The aim of this study is to observe oral candidiasis in immunosuppressed Wistar rats post dexamethasone injection at 7.2 mg/kg and 16 mg/kg doses. Material and Methods: Twenty-one Wistar rats were divided into three groups: control group, treatment group 1 (injected with dexamethasone at a concentration of 7.2 mg/kg), and treatment group 2 (at a concentration of 16 mg/kg) for five days. Immunosuppression status was observed by leukocyte count and all the subjects’ palates were inoculated with C.albicans 0.1 ml of 15x108 UFC/ml 24 hours later. The subjects’ tongues were observed and confirmed by laboratory examination on day 10. A statistical analysis was performed using one way ANOVA, Kruskal–Wallis, Tukey HSD, and Mann-Whitney U tests. Results: A significant clinical appearance of the subjects’ tongues was observed only between C and T1 (p=0.023;p<0.05). Significant hyphal formation was observed between C and T1 (p= 0.037;p<0.05) and between C and T2 (p=0.007;p<0.05), and no significant difference was observed between T1 and T2. A significant increase in the colony count was also observed in similar results. Conclusion: Dexamethasone injection at doses of 7.2 mg/kg and 16 mg/kg is effective in triggering immunosuppression to induce oral candidiasis in immunosuppressed Wistar rats. Keywords Dexamethasone; Immunosuppression; Oral candidiasis.
Highlights
Oral candidiasis is the most prevalent opportunistic infection that occurs on the skin and mucous membranes of the oral cavity, and it is caused by candida species [1,2]
The sample used was from 21 healthy male Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus) weighing 160-250 grams, selected randomly into three groups (n=7): Wistar rats only inoculated with C.albicans, immunosuppressed Wistar rats induced with dexamethasone at a concentration of 7.2 mg/ kg and inoculated with C.albicans, and immunosuppressed Wistar rats induced with 16 mg/kg dexamethasone and inoculated with C.albicans
In the control group, C.albicans cells were commonly seen as the formation of ovoid-shaped budding yeast cells, while in treatment group 1 and treatment group 2, in general, the cells were seen as hyphal cell shapes arranged in parallel form (Figure 7)
Summary
Oral candidiasis is the most prevalent opportunistic infection that occurs on the skin and mucous membranes of the oral cavity, and it is caused by candida species [1,2]. One of the opportunistic candida that commonly causes the infections is Candida albicans (C.albicans), while a third of them are caused by non-albicans species [3] C.albicans is a harmless, normal flora found in the oral cavity of nearly 50% of the population, but in certain circumstances, such as in cases of decreased immune defenses or where there is a disruption of oral flora, C.albicans can turn into opportunistic pathogens [4]. Immunosuppression can increase the risk of candida infections. Dexamethasone is often used in clinical practice, because it has adequate antiinflammatory and immunosuppression effects, inhibiting the activation of T cell proliferation through increased activity of type 2 macrophages (Mph2), and reducing the B cell activator factor so that it causes autoreactive B cell apoptosis [6]
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