Detection of Candida auris antifungal drug resistance markers directly from clinical skin swabs

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2019 Sep 9;63(12):e01754-19. doi: 10.1128/AAC.01754-19. Epub 2019 Oct 7.

Abstract

Accurate and rapid assessment of Candida auris antifungal drug resistance is crucial for effective infection prevention and control actions, and patient management. Here, performance of a molecular diagnostic platform, enabling rapid identification of FKS1 and ERG11 mutations conferring echinocandin and azole resistance, respectively, was evaluated on a panel of clinical skin swabs. Gene sequencing and antifungal susceptibility testing were used as "gold standard". All swabs were correctly categorized as harboring wild-type or mutant C. auris.