Low prevalence of Cutibacterium acnes in prostatic tissue biopsies in a French hospital.

We evaluated the Cutibacterium acnes prevalence in prostatic biopsies and characterized the strains at a molecular level. 18 out of 36 biopsies (50%) were sterile after seven days in culture. C. acnes was observed in only two biopsies. Its prevalence was low (5.6%). Finally, the molecular characterization revealed diverse clusters including phylotypes IA1, IB and II.

Colistin interacts synergistically with echinocandins against Candida auris.

Antifungal combination is an interesting approach for the treatment of several fungal infections but there is currently little evidence to support combined therapy in Candida auris infections. The antibacterial colistin has recently been shown to interact synergistically with antifungals against Candida spp., including azole-resistant isolates. The current study evaluated the in vitro interaction between colistin and either caspofungin or micafungin against 15 C. auris isolates by a checkerboard methodology based on the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) reference method. Results were analysed by two approaches: calculation of the fractional inhibitory concentration index (FICI) and response surface analysis based on the Bliss model. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) range (geometric mean [Gmean]) of caspofungin and micafungin was 0.25 to 1 µg/mL (0.691 µg/mL) and 0.03 to 0.125 µg/mL (0.114 µg/mL), respectively. No activity was observed for colistin alone with MIC of >64 µg/mL for all the isolates. When colistin was combined with caspofungin, synergistic interactions were observed for all strains with FICI values of 0.08 to 0.14. In contrast, indifferent interactions were observed for the combination of colistin with micafungin with FICI values of 0.51 to 1.01. Synergy was also demonstrated using the Bliss model against all isolates for the colistin-caspofungin combination and in 60% of isolates for the colistin-micafungin combination. Antagonism was not observed for any combination.

In vitro antifungal combination of flucytosine with amphotericin B, voriconazole, or micafungin against Candida auris shows no antagonism.

Candida auris is an emerging, multidrug resistant pathogen, responsible for invasive hospital-acquired infections. Flucytosine is an effective anti-Candida drug, but which cannot be used as a monotherapy because of the risk of development of resistant mutants during treatment. It is therefore noteworthy to test possible combinations with flucytosine that may have a synergistic interaction. In this study, we determined the in vitro interaction between flucytosine and amphotericin B, micafungin, or voriconazole. These combinations have been tested against 15 C. auris isolates. The MIC range (Gmean) of flucytosine, amphotericin B, micafungin and voriconazole were 0.125 to 1 µg/mL (0.42 µg/ml), 0.25 to 1 µg/ml (0.66 µg/ml), 0.125 to 0.5 µg/ml (0.3 µg/ml) and 0.03 to 4 µg/ml (1.05 µg/ml), respectively. When tested in combination, indifferent interactions were mostly observed with fractional inhibitory concentration index values from 0.5 to 1, 0.31 to 1.01 and 0.5 to 1.06 for the combination of flucytosine with amphotericin B, micafungin and voriconazole, respectively. A synergy was observed for the strain CBS 10913 from Japan. No antagonism was observed for any combination. Combination of flucytosine with amphotericin B or micafungin may be relevant for the treatment of C. auris infections.

Candida auris: An emerging drug resistant yeast - A mini-review.

Candida auris is an emerging fungal pathogen responsible for nosocomial invasive infection outbreaks on five continents. Large healthcare-related outbreaks of C. auris infection and colonization have been reported from different countries. Whole genome sequence analysis identified strong phylogeographic C. auris clades specific to particular geographical areas suggesting transmission of particular clades within countries. However, the mode of transmission within the healthcare environment is not clear and is likely to be multifactorial. The emergence of C. auris is alarming because this organism can harbor or develop multidrug resistance. This explains why C. auris infections are difficult to treat. In addition, difficulties in its identification in the routine diagnostic laboratory have a significant impact on outbreak detection and management. This mini-review highlights the available literature on C. auris, with particular insight into its epidemiology and the problems caused by its antifungal resistance.