A newly developed
latex agglutination (LA) test and a modified immunodiffusion (ID) test were evaluated. The
antigen used was a homogenate of Candida albicans. A total of 167
antisera were employed in the evaluation. They included 36 sera from clinically well persons; 78 from patients with various clinical forms of
candidiasis; 52 from patients with proven cases of
aspergillosis,
blastomycosis,
coccidioidomycosis,
cryptococcosis,
histoplasmosis,
nocardiosis,
paracoccidioidomycosis,
sporotrichosis, and
tuberculosis; and one serum from a patient with toruloposis. Use of the LA test in conjunction with the ID test permitted the detection of more than 90% of 43 proven
candidiasis cases. Of all the heterologous cases and normal human sera tested, LA reactions were noted with 3 of 10
cryptococcosis case specimens, 1 of 9
tuberculosis case specimens, and with the torulopsemia case serum. In contrast, the only heterologous serum reactive in the ID test was that from the patient with torulopsemia. Torulopsis glabrata and C. albicans
antisera gave identical reactions in LA and ID tests with T. glabrata or C. albicans
antigens. ID tests with selected
antigens, however, permitted differentiation of rabbit and human T. glabrata antibody from that of C. albicans antibody. Six different
precipitins were recognized with the C. albicans
antigens. The occurrence of multiple precipitin lines and high LA titers was suggestive of severe
candidiasis. The LA test, in contrast to the ID test, appeared to have prognostic value. Together, the LA and ID tests provided a simple, rapid, and accurate means of detecting and monitoring
infections by species of Candida.