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Metcalf, R.; Akinbobola, A.; Quilliam, R.

Characterisation, minimum inhibitory concentration, thermotolerance and virulence of Candida isolated from environmental plastic pollution, Scotland, 2023

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This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

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https://doi.org/10.5285/4477f77c-c1c9-44e4-baeb-3353954c8355
This dataset contains characterisation data, thermotolerance data, anti-fungal drug resistance data and virulence data of Candida isolates from different types of plastic pollution. Samples were collected from marine, estuarine and freshwater environments, and screened for pathogenic species of Candida. These Candida isolates were subsequently assessed for their thermotolerance, anti-fungal drug resistance, and their pathogenicity in a Galleria model of infection.
Data were collected as part of grants NE/V005847/1, Sustainable Plastic Attitudes to benefit Communities and their Environments (SPACES), and NE/S005196/1, Microbial hitch-hikers of marine plastics: the survival, persistence & ecology of microbial communities in the 'Plastisphere'.
Publication date: 2024-06-26
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More information

View numbers valid from 26 June 2024 Download numbers valid from 26 June 2024 (information prior to this was not collected)

Format

Comma-separated values (CSV)

Spatial information

Study area
Spatial representation type
Tabular (text)
Spatial reference system
OSGB 1936 / British National Grid

Temporal information

Temporal extent
2023-01-01    to    2023-12-31

Provenance & quality

At each site, plastic was collected using sterile forceps and placed into sterile ziplock bags. Candida species were recovered from replicate composite samples of each plastic type from each site using selective media. Twenty-seven colonies were isolated, and glycerol stocks prepared and frozen at -20°C.

Colony PCR was carried out with primers targeting the ITS region to identify the five common pathogenic species of Candida, i.e., C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. krusei, C. parapsilosis, and C. tropicalis. Different amplicon sizes were used to differentiate between distinct Candida species and three reference clinical pathogenic strains of C. albicans (strain SC 5314), C. glabrata (strain ATCC 2001) and C. tropicalis (strain CAY676), were included as positive controls.

To further confirm the identity of each isolate, the ITS1 region was amplified and sequenced. All purified PCR products underwent Sanger sequencing and species identification was confirmed using NCBI’s Basic Local Alignment Search Tool.

Each Candida isolate were subjected to minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) analysis to determine antifungal resistance following the European Committee on Antimicrobial susceptibility testing (EUCAST) antifungal MIC method for yeasts. Resistance to four antifungals at ten concentrations was examined: amphotericin B (0.008 – 4 mg/L), caspofungin (0.008 – 4 mg/L), fluconazole (0.125 – 64 mg/L), voriconazole (0.008 – 4 mg/L).
To determine the thermotolerance profile, each isolate underwent an initial incubation at 18°C (simulating an environmental temperature) or 38°C (simulating human body temperature) for 24 h, before being moved to one of three different temperatures (18, 28 or 38°C) where their growth was measured. Absorbance at 570 nm was measured before and after incubation in a spectrophotometer to determine the growth of the isolates.

Galleria melonella was used as an infection model to investigate the pathogenicity of the Candida isolates. Groups of 10 larvae were injected with 10 µL of Candida cells (105 CFU/larvae) into the hemocoel via the last right pro-limb. All experiments were conducted in biological triplicate. An inoculation of 10 µL PBS was used as a control to account for mortality caused by physical injury or infection by contamination. Following injection, larvae were incubated at 37°C, and survival evaluated every 24 h for a total of 120 h. Larvae were considered dead when they did not respond to a touch stimulus.

Licensing and constraints

This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

Cite this dataset as:
Metcalf, R.; Akinbobola, A.; Quilliam, R. (2024). Characterisation, minimum inhibitory concentration, thermotolerance and virulence of Candida isolated from environmental plastic pollution, Scotland, 2023. NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/4477f77c-c1c9-44e4-baeb-3353954c8355

Correspondence/contact details

Metcalf, R.
University of Stirling
 rebecca.metcalf@stir.ac.uk

Authors

Metcalf, R.
University of Stirling
Akinbobola, A.
University of Stirling
Quilliam, R.
University of Stirling

Other contacts

Rights holder
University of Stirling
Custodian
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
 info@eidc.ac.uk
Publisher
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
 info@eidc.ac.uk

Additional metadata

Topic categories
environment
health
INSPIRE theme
Human Health and Safety
Keywords
antifungal resistance , Central Scotland , environmental pollution , fungal pathogens , pathogenic yeast , plastisphere , Pollution , virulence
Funding
Natural Environment Research Council Award: NE/V005847/1
Natural Environment Research Council Award: NE/S005196/1
Last updated
06 January 2025 14:40