[Detection of Candida albicans by PCR]

Detection of Candida albicans by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was conducted. Oligonucleotide primers to amplify a 180 bp fragment on the beta-tubulin gene of C. albicans were synthesized. PCR was conducted using standard strains (14 species and 32 strains) and strains isolated from clinical samples (8 species and 12 strains) in Kitasato University Hospital. The PCR specifically amplified DNA from C. albicans of all standard strains and neither any other Candida, other fungal, bacterial nor human DNA. In three samples of clinically isolated C. albicans strains, the positive bands were also detected. This PCR procedure is more specific and rapid than the conventional culture method and is applicable to clinical diagnosis of the C. albicans infections.