Macrophage phagocytosis of Candida albicans. An in vitro study

Abstract

Considering the role of macrophages in relation to fungi and the various utilized methodologies, the authors established an in vitro model to evaluate macrophage phagocytosis of Candida albicans. Activated macrophages were obtained from the peritoneal cavity of isogenic mice (A/Sn). Two different strains of Candida albicans serotype A and serotype B with different levels of pathogenicity in vivo and other similar characteristics were utilized in the study. Several microscopic fields containing about 200 macrophages were counted. The percentage of macrophages phagocytizing at least one viable or nonviable yeast cell determined an average number of phagocytized yeasts. Neutral red and fluorescein diacetate plus ethidium bromide were used for staining. It is possible to conclude that this is an efficient model related to the used methodology. The average number of yeasts in both strains were similar when inside macrophages, and there was a higher percentage of C. albicans serotype A phagocytosis, which was not experimentally pathogenic in vivo.