Aim: To evaluate if radiation used in radiotherapy can cause changes in the virulence potential of Candida tropicalis ATCC 750.
Materials & methods: C. tropicalis was exposed in vitro to identical dose and scheme of irradiation would be used in patients with head and neck cancer. Some virulence parameters were analyzed before and after irradiation.
Results: Colony morphologies were irreversibly affected by irradiation. Increase in growth rate, filamentation, adhesion on cell lines and phagocytosis process were also observed. Overall the irradiated C. tropicalis cells became more efficient at causing systemic infection in mice.
Conclusion: γ-radiation induced important changes in C. tropicalis increasing its virulence profile, which could directly affect the relationship between yeasts and hosts.
Keywords: Candida tropicalis; head and neck neoplasms; radiation; virulence factors.