Candida orthopsilosis

Candida orthopsilosis is recognised as part of the Candida parapsilosis species complex (Tavanti et al., 2005).

It is phenotypically indistinguishable from C. parapsilosis, C. metapsilosis and Lodderomyces elongisporus and is best identified by ITS sequencing or MALDI-ToF MS.

RG-2 organism.

Culture: 
Colonies (SDA) white to cream-coloured smooth, glabrous, yeast-like.

Microscopy: 
Ellipsoid to subglobose budding blastoconidia, 2-5 x 3-7 µm, with some larger elongated forms present.

India ink preparation: 
Negative - no capsules present.

Dalmau plate culture:
Abundant, much-branched pseudohyphae produced.

Physiological Tests: + Positive, - Negative, v Variable, w Weak, s Slow, nd No Data
Germ Tube - L-Sorbose + L-Arabinose + D-Glucitol +
Fermentation   Sucrose + D-Arabinose - 𝝰-M-D-Glucoside +
Glucose + Maltose + D-Ribose - D-Gluconate +
Galactose - Cellobiose - L-Rhamnose - DL-Lactate -
Sucrose - Trehalose + D-Glucosamime - myo-Inositol -
Maltose - Lactose - N-A-D-glucosamine + 2-K-D-Gluconate +
Lactose - Melibiose - Glycerol + D-Glucuronate -
Trehalose -,s Raffinose - Erythritol - Nitrate -
Assimilation   Melezitose + Ribitol + Urease -
Glucose + Soluble Starch v Galactitol - 0.1% Cycloheximide -
Galactose + D-Xylose + D-Mannitol + Growth at 37C +

Key features:  
Candida orthopsilosis cannot be distinguished morphologically from C. parapsilosis and C. metapsilosis, but can be identified by ITS sequencing (Asadzadeh et al. 2009, Borman et al. 2009, Tavanti et al. 2005) and MALDI-TOF MS analysis.

Antifungal susceptibility: Candida orthopsilosis (Australian national data); MIC µg/mL.
Antifungal No ≤0.016 0.03 0.06 0.125 0.25 0.5 1 2 4 8 16 32 ≥64
AMB 225   3 3 30 46 60 48 23 9        
FLU 197       1 9 45 86 24 16 9 4   3
VORI 177 68 51 36 6 13 2 2            
POSA 137 5 21 49 42 9 11              
ITRA 95 3 14 30 32 16                
ANID 87   1   2 9 20 44 10          
MICA 85 1 1   3 36 38 6 1          
5FC 93     56 22 9 3 1   1       1

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