ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Routine use of a one minute trehalase and maltase test for the identification of Candida glabrata in four laboratories

M A Piens¹, J D Perry², H Raberin³, F Parant⁴, A M Freydiére⁴

¹ Laboratoire de Parasitologie Mycologie Médicale, 69373 Lyon, France
² Microbiology Department, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne NE7 7DN, UK
³ Laboratoire de Parasitologie Mycologie, Hôpital Nord, 42055 St Etienne, France
⁴ Laboratoire de Microbiologie, Hôpital Debrousse, 69322 Lyon, France

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr A-M Freydiére, Laboratoire de Microbiologie, Hôpital Debrousse, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 29 Rue Sur Bouvier, 69322 Lyon cedex 05, France;
anne-marie.freydiere{at}chu-lyon.fr

Aims: To evaluate the rapid identification of Candida glabrata using a one minute trehalase and maltase test in four clinical laboratories.

Method: The test was evaluated with 944 freshly isolated yeasts comprising 572 C glabrata and 372 non-C glabrata strains. These strains were isolated on one of three differential media—Candida ID, CHROMagar Candida, or Albicans ID2 medium—and all strains were fully identified using standard methods.

Results: The trehalase and maltase test allowed the overall identification of 550 of 572 C glabrata strains (sensitivity, 96.2%) and only 11 of 372 isolates of other yeast species yielded a false positive result (specificity, 96.8 %). Sensitivity and specificity were consistent from one laboratory to another. Using Candida ID medium, the rapid trehalase and maltase test showed a sensitivity of 95% and specificity of 96.2%. Using CHROMagar Candida, sensitivity and specificity were 95.6% and 98.1%, respectively. Using Albicans ID2 medium (tested by two laboratories), the sensitivity was 100% and 98.5% and specificity was 98.1% and 98.2%. In 60% of cases, the test could be performed directly from the primary isolation medium, thus reducing the time for identification.

Conclusion: The rapid trehalase and maltase test was highly reliable for the presumptive identification of C glabrata on primary isolation using three different chromogenic media. Direct recognition of C albicans by means of their characteristic colour on chromogenic media coupled with one minute trehalase maltase testing performed only on suspect colonies of C glabrata allowed for rapid presumptive identification of the two yeast species most commonly encountered in clinical samples.

Keywords: Candida glabrata; chromogenic media; trehalase; rapid identification

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