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Toxicity of Human Pathogenic Fungi Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus and their Effect on Development and Hemocytes of the Greater Wax Moth Larvae Galleria mellonella (Le

Article

Last updated: 20 Jan 2025

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Abstract

Toxicity testing on rodents is a prerequisite for using therapeutic agents in humans. However, experiments in mice and rats are expensive and need ethical consideration. Therefore, Galleria mellonella has been extensively used as an alternative model to study microbial infections in humans. The current study focuses on the toxicity of human fungal pathogens, Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus against G. mellonella larvae under controlled laboratory conditions. The injection of both fungal species with different doses (2x102, 2x103, 2x104, 2x105, and 2x106 cells/larva) gave an LD50 of 6.8x104 and 4.6x104 for A. fumigatus and C. albicans, respectively. Larval, pupal, and adult periods were significantly prolonged at 2x104 for both fungal species and afterward, while pupal and adult developmental ratios and adult longevity were significantly reduced, except at the lowest dose (2x104). Larval treatment with LD50 of both fungal species showed a decrease in the concentrations of proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates in larval tissues, and a greater reduction was observed in larvae injected with C. albicans compared to A. fumigatus. There was a significant decrease in total hemocyte counts (THCs) and hemocyte spreading activity (HSA) after 24 and 48 h of treatment; however, the Variations in plasmatocytes (PLs) and granular cells (GRs) were not statistically significant. In conclusion, this physio-pathological study confirms that changes in some biochemical parameters such as total body proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates as well as cellular immune responses such as changes in hemocyte counts and behavior of Galleria larvae are used as indicators of relative toxicity of the tested pathogens in biomedical research.

DOI

10.21608/eajbsg.2025.404444

Keywords

Galleria mellonella, Candida albicans, Aspergillus fumigatus, toxicity assessment, Biochemical aspects, hemocytes

Authors

First Name

Emad

Last Name

Barakat

MiddleName

M. S.

Affiliation

Department of Entomology, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11566, Egypt

Email

-

City

Egypt

Orcid

-

First Name

Mohamed

Last Name

Abokersh

MiddleName

O.

Affiliation

Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Al-Asmarya Islamic University, Zeletin, Libya.

Email

emsbarakat@yahoo.com

City

Libya

Orcid

-

First Name

Hanan

Last Name

Altaief

MiddleName

H.

Affiliation

Department of Biology, College of Education. Omar Al-Mukhtar University. Al-Bayda, Libya.

Email

-

City

Libya

Orcid

-

First Name

Ahmed

Last Name

Bream

MiddleName

S.

Affiliation

Zoology Department, Faculty of Science (Boys), Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11884, Egypt.

Email

ahmed_bream@yahoo.com

City

Egypt

Orcid

-

First Name

Zeinab

Last Name

Shouaib

MiddleName

A.

Affiliation

Zoology Department, Faculty of Science (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11884, Egypt.

Email

-

City

Egypt

Orcid

-

Volume

17

Article Issue

1

Related Issue

52846

Issue Date

2025-06-01

Receive Date

2024-12-06

Publish Date

2025-01-16

Page Start

1

Page End

13

Print ISSN

2090-0872

Online ISSN

2090-0880

Link

https://eajbsg.journals.ekb.eg/article_404444.html

Detail API

http://journals.ekb.eg?_action=service&article_code=404444

Order

404,444

Type

Original Article

Type Code

689

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Egyptian Academic Journal of Biological Sciences, G. Microbiology

Publication Link

https://eajbsg.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Toxicity of Human Pathogenic Fungi Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus and their Effect on Development and Hemocytes of the Greater Wax Moth Larvae Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Details

Type

Article

Created At

13 Jan 2025