ERG11 gene, Erg11 protein and ergosterol content analysis in clinical isolates of Candida tropicalis resistant and susceptible to voriconazole.. Molecular mechanisms of azole resistance in Candida tropicalis

Candida tropicalis causes difficult to treat invasive candidiasis due to its antifungal resistance, mainly to azoles. The aim of the present work was to study the role of the gene ERG11 on the resistance to VRC in C. tropicalis. A total of eighteen clinical isolates of C. tropicalis with known outcome in an in vivo animal model receiving VRC as treatment were exposed in vitro to VRC and the expression was quantified by RT-PCR. In addition, the ERG11 gene was amplified and sequenced to detect possible mutation; we found amino acid change in three of the strains. The expression of ERG11 does not correlate with the MIC scale. In addition, the expression profiles of change consistently after exposure to VRC.