[Detection of Candida DNA in simulated blood samples by polymerase chain reaction]

Although blood culture method is accepted as gold standard in the laboratory diagnosis of invasive candidiasis seen in immunocompromised patients, cultivation of blood is considered as not a reliable and rapid method for the diagnosis of candidemia, since it may be negative in approximately half of the patients, slow growth rate of Candida in routine culture media and requirement of large amounts of blood for the isolation. The aim of this study was to detect Candida DNA in simulated blood samples by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Simulated samples were prepared by using blood samples of healthy volunteers. These samples were inoculated into tubes with EDTA and BACTEC 9240 blood culture bottles in which no growth was detected and with standard strains of C. albicans, C. tropicalis, C. parapsilosis, C. krusei, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus together with the clinical isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus, C. kefyr, C. glabrata, C. lusitaniae, C. guilliermondii and Rhodotorula sp. Additionally, blood culture samples of 23 cases whose blood culture bottles signaled as positive and revealed growth of Candida in agar plates were examined. DNA extraction of all samples were performed according to the standard procedure proposed by the MN Nucleospin Tissue Kit (Macherey-Nagel, Germany) for tissue samples; following the pre-treatment with erythrocyte, leukocyte and fungus cell wall lysis buffers. DNAs were amplified with PCR, using primers specific for the 5S rDNA region (PCon 1 and PCon 2 primers) and PCR products were obtained by electrophoresis in 2% agarose gel. Presence of a 105 base pair (bp) product was considered as positive. The lowest detection limit of PCR has been determined as 10(2)-10(3) cfu/ml Candida for our simulated samples. The presence of a 105 bp band has been observed in samples prepared with all Candida strains included in the study. Blood samples spiked with E. coli, S. aureus, A. fumigatus and Rhodotorula sp. and negative blood samples has been found negative in terms of Candida DNA. The same 105 bp product has been observed for blood culture samples with Candida growth. The PCR method applied in this study takes approximately seven hours and the cost was calculated approximately 6.00 U.S. dollars per patient. As a result, it has been determined that Candida DNA can be detected in a shorter time by PCR using specific primers for 5S rDNA gene from simulated samples prepared with either blood or BACTEC blood culture bottles.