RAPD ANALYSIS OF CANDIDA-ALBICANS STRAINS RECOVERED FROM DIFFERENT IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PATIENTS (IPE) REVEALS AN APPARENTLY NONRANDOM INFECTIVITY OF THE STRAINS

The opportunistic imperfect fungus Candida albicans causing life-threa tening infections in immunocompromised patients (ICP), especially in H IV-positive cases, is recognized to be one of the most important nosoc omial pathogens in the recent decades. The extent of strain-to-strain variation within a species and its relationship to the ability of the organism to colonize or invade a specific group of patients or even a body site is, however, not well known. We have analysed 19 strains of C.albicans recovered from ICP at different locales and times, employin g the RAPD technique. No two strains generated identical RAPD profiles with any of the 21 primers tested. Further, the UPGMA clustering of t he strains seemingly reflected a certain relationship or nonrandomness in the infection of the patients with the strain of C.albicans vis-a- vis the immunocompromised status due to underlying disease such as dia betes, cancer, asthma and meningitis. These results may have a profoun d impact on the management of candidiasis, especially in the ICP.