[Effect of amphotericin B on the enzyme system of Candida albicans]

The mechanism of amphotericin B action was studied with the aid of cytochemical methods providing determination of the activity of the 4 main enzymes characterizing the cell energetics, i. e. succinate dehydrogenase, lactate dehydrogenase, alcohol dehydrogenase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase inside the cell. With an increase in the concentration of amphotericin B in the medium the activity of all the 4 enzymes decreased, the percentage of the inactive cells being regularly increased. Changes in the fermentative activity of C. albicans as dependent on the incubation time with the antibiotic were studied. Only the respiration activity decreased in 2 hours. As a result of a 4-hour exposure to the polyen in the cells of C. albicans the activity of the lactic acid fermentation, respiration through succinate dehydrogenase and activity of the pentose shunt decreased 1.5--2 times. In 24 hours of incubation the activity of the above decreased 80--90 per cent as compared to the activity of the initial culture.