Changes in Adhesion of Candida tropicalis Clinical Isolates Exhibiting Switch Phenotypes to Polystyrene and HeLa Cells

Background Candida tropicalis is an important human pathogen that can undergo multiple forms of phenotypic switching. Aim We aimed to evaluate the effect of phenotypic switching on the adhesion ability of C. tropicalis . Methods C. tropicalis morphotypes included parental phenotypes (clinical isolates) and switch phenotypes (crepe, revertant of crepe—CR, rough, revertant of rough—RR, irregular center and revertant of irregular center—ICR). Adhesion to polystyrene and HeLa cells was determined by crystal violet assay. The percentage of HeLa cells with adhered yeasts and the number of adhered yeasts per HeLa cell were determined by light microscopy. Filamentation among adhered cells was assessed by direct counting. Results On polystyrene, 60% of the switch strains showed difference ( p