LONG‐TERM ORAL CANDIDOSIS IN RATS

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Abstract
The carriage and infection rate during continuous oral inoculation of Candida albicans in conventionalized SPF [specific pathogen-free] rats after initial tetracycline medication were investigated. During the 34 wk experiment, 50% of the animals harbored C. albicans in the mouth; only 25% of the animals demonstrated pseudomycelial penetration of the oral mucosa. Of the candidal foci, > 90% were found in areas covered by a less densely cornified epithelium and were mainly localized to the sulcular folds, the gingival margin and the cheek. Only the dorsal surface of the tongue showed foci with obvious signs of long-standing candidal infection. The lingual papillae were lost and replaced by a flat-surfaced parakeratotic epithelium showing irregular hyperplasia and acanthosis, but no atypia. Reactive changes were found in the underlying lingual muscular layer.