Disseminated Candidiasis. I. An Experimental Model in the Guinea Pig

Abstract

A model of experimental disseminated candidiasis was developed in the guinea pig; Candida albicans was injected intraperitoneally or intravenously. The kidney was the most severely affected organ, with maximal colony counts of 26,208 ± 9,152 colony-forming units/g of tissue five days after a sublethal inoculation (one-sixth of the 50% lethal dose) of viable organisms. The heart was the next most severely affected organ, and other organs were affected little. Histologic studies confirmed the data from colony counts and showed a progression of inflammation similar to that seen in human disease. A leukocytosis predominantly of mononuclear cells, and to a lesser degree of granulocytes, occurred and was maximal four days after inoculation. This model will provide the framework for a series of future studies of the various factors important in natural host defense against infection with Candida, as well as the effects of various immunosuppressive agents, particularly corticosteroids, on the development and expression of immunity and protection against infection.