Abstract

Infections by Candida species have generated high rates of morbidity, long hospital stay, high cost in treatment, and high mortality rates. Immunosuppressed individuals such as those with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) have greater susceptibility to developing these infections due to the low number of CD4 T-lymphocytes, less than 200 cells/mm3. C. albicans is the most studied species and is related to the processes of colonization and pathogenicity in man’s mouth. This characteristic is due to, among other factors, production of exoenzymes which facilitate the interaction of the fungus with the host’s cells. This study examined the production of exoenzymes protease, phospholipase, gelatinase and hemolysin samples of buccal Candida isolated from 49 AIDS patients (test group) and 26 healthy individuals (control group). C. albicans was the most prevalent species in the test group (59.2%) and C. parapsilosis (53.8%) in the control group. C. albicans showed significant results for the production of protease in both groups andphospholipase, in the test group. But the non-Candida albicans Candida (NCAC) species had highly significant results for phospholipase in the control group. For the enzymes gelatinase and hemolysin, there were not significant differences between C. albicans species and NCAC. Finally, there was no statistical difference in the production of exoenzymes when the test group was compared with the control group.

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