Characterization of Virulence Factors, Cellular Stress Response, and Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Trichosporon spp. Isolated from Northeast Brazilian Patients
2025
Márcia Gabriele de Souza Jimenez | Matheus Firmino de Azevedo | Elaine Cristina Francisco | Ana Maria de Andrade Oliveira Boczar | Ana Carolina Barbosa Padovan | Eveline Pipolo Milan | Walicyranison Plinio da Silva Rocha | Guilherme Maranhão Chaves
Trichosporon spp. are emerging pathogens that may cause high mortality rates, specifically among immunocompromised individuals. The objectives of this study were to perform a phylogenetic analysis of Trichosporon spp. clinical isolates. We also evaluated the expression of different virulence factors in vitro. In addition, the isolates were grown in the presence of cell-wall and membrane stressors. The antifungal susceptibility profiling was determined. The most prevalent strains belonged to the recently described species T. austroamericanum, with 17 isolates. The other strains were identified as follows: T. asahii (n = 4), T. faecale (n = 2), and T. asteroides (n = 2). All the isolates of T. asahii, T. faecale, and T. asteroides were strong biofilm producers. Statistical analysis revealed that T. asahii strains produced more biofilm than T. austroamericanum. Higher cell surface hydrophobicity was also found for T. asahii isolates compared to T. austroamericanum counterparts. T. austroamericanum seems to be more susceptible to Congo Red, Calcofluor White, and SDS than T. asahii. It is possible to conclude that Trichosporon spp. may present peculiarities in terms of the expression of different virulence factors in vitro, besides displaying a variable susceptibility to different cellular stressors. T. faecale isolates may present high MICs to the azoles, while T. asahii against amphotericin B.
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