YEAST-LIKE FUNGI FROM THE DIGESTIVE-TRACT OF STURNUS-VULGARIS

Objective: Starlings are newly cities invading birds and people get wo rried about human health. In order to know the pathogen agents they ca n spread, we listed the yeasts present in their digestive tract. Metho ds: One hundred starlings were studied. Two sites were sampled in each one: cloaca and gizzard. Samples were cultured on Sabouraud-chloramph enicol, CHROMagar Candida(R) and Guizotia abyssinica media. CHROMagar Candida(R) medium was the best one to differentiate colonies and every morphologic type of yeast was isolated from each sample and identifie d by assimilation tests (API 32C(R)). Diversity in Candida albicans is olates were assessed by determining their antigenic group by Bichrolat ex serotype A Candida albicans(R) method and by multilocus enzyme elec trophoresis (8 enzymes assayed: hexokinase, glucose-6-phosphate-dehydr ogenase, leucine aminopeptidase, malate-dehydrogenase, glucose-phospha te-isomerase, mannosephosphate-isomerase, valine-leucine peptidase and lysine-leucine peptidase). Results: Yeast-like flora is similar in cl oaca and gizzard. Candida albicans was present in 60 birds and no Cryp tococcus neoformans was isolated. All C, albicans isolates belonged to the antigenic group A. Isoenzyme profiles study of 60 C. albicans iso lates showed that genotypic diversity is low and that the same strain is colonizing the two digestive Sites.