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Updated: Oct 17, 2026

A Soluble Tetrazolium-Based Reduction Assay to Evaluate the Effect of Antibodies on Candida tropicalis Biofilms
Published on: September 16, 2022
Host immune reactivity determines the efficacy of combination immunotherapy and antifungal chemotherapy in
1Microbiology Section, Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Sciences, University of Perugia, 06122 Perugia, Italy.
Abstract:
In immunocompetent mice with candidiasis, successful therapy with amphotericin B and fluconazole relies on the induction of protective, T helper (Th) type 1 responses, an effect potentiated by concomitant interleukin (IL)-4 neutralization. To assess the therapeutic efficacy of combined treatments with antifungals and immunomodulators in conditions of immunosuppression, leukopenic or neutropenic mice with disseminated candidiasis were treated with amphotericin B or fluconazole alone or in combination with soluble IL-4 receptor (sIL-4R) or recombinant (r) IL-12 or IL-10 neutralizing monoclonal antibodies. We found that (1) the synergistic effect of sIL-4R and antifungals is retained in immunocompromised mice; (2) synergism with amphotericin B was superior to that with fluconazole, particularly in leukopenic mice; (3) rIL-12 synergized with fluconazole in neutropenic mice; and (4) IL-10 neutralization was always of limited efficacy. This study indicates that the therapeutic efficacy of antifungals is differentially potentiated by cytokines or cytokine antagonists and is influenced by host immune reactivity.
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