First identification of Candida dubliniensis at Ibn Rochd University Hospital of Casablanca (Morocco)

Candida dubliniensis is a newly recognized yeast species with phenotypic characteristics closely related to Candida albicans and specifically identified by molecular biology. C. dubliniensis is commonly associated with oral candidiasis, especially in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients. In this study, the authors describe the first isolates of C. dubliniensis from Morocco and compare phenotypic identification of this species with PCR. For this purpose, 12 C. albicans isolates, taken from hospitalized patients in Ibn Rochd University Hospital of Casablanca (Morocco), were selected for C. dubliniensis confirmation on the basis of their ability to produce abundant chlamydospores on Rice-Agar-Tween (RAT) medium and absence of growth at 45 °C. Presumptive identification of C. dubliniensis was performed using different phenotypic methods: ability to produce chlamydospores on casein agar medium, carbohydrate assimilation profiles and latex agglutination. Final identification was confirmed at the CRMA, Pasteur Institute of Paris, by positive amplification with C. dubliniensis specific primers. Thus, five isolates were confirmed in this study as C. dubliniensis, two were taken from oropharyngeal samples of HIV infected patients, while the remaining three were taken from bronchial aspirations of non-HIV patients.