Study of virulence factor of Candida species in oral lesions and its association with potentially malignant and malignant lesions

Abstract

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to explore the association between malignant and premalignant lesions and the virulence factor profile of Candida spp. recovered from different oral lesions. DesignCandida spp. isolated from malignant lesions (squamous cell carcinoma, OC, n = 25), atypical lichen planus (AL, n = 11), chronic candidiasis (CC, n = 25), and asymptomatic carriers (WI, n = 15, control strains.) Isolates were identified in chromogenic medium, colony morphology and biochemical tests. The lipolytic and proteinase activity was determined on supplemented agar with olive oil and BSA, respectively. The biofilm formation with XTT reduction assay and cellular surface hydrophobicity (CSH) by water-hydrocarbon method were performed. ResultsAll isolates recovered from oral lesions produced the four virulence factors studied with significantly higher levels than in WI isolates. Interestingly, lipolytic activity was absent in WI isolates. The proteolytic activity was similar in AL and OC isolates. OC isolates showed significantly higher CSH values than other clinical isolates. Non-albicans species showed higher biofilm formation than C.albicans (P = 0.03.) There were no significant differences in virulence factors among species. A strong positive correlation was found between proteinase and lipase activity (r = 0.90, P < 0.0001), and between hydrophobicity and biofilm (R = 0.81, P < 0.0001.) ConclusionsOur results indicate that OC Candida isolates exhibited a significant higher attributes of virulence than other lesions fungus isolates, providing evidence about the association between Candida pathogenicity and lesions severity.