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Microorganisms
Volume 13
Issue 12
10.3390/microorganisms13122698
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Article

When Conventional Methods Fail: First Detection of a Candida viswanathii Outbreak in Europe in a Pediatric Hospital Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing and FT-IR Spectroscopy

by
Gianluca Vrenna
1,†,
Valeria Fox
2,†,
Venere Cortazzo
1,*,
Serena Raimondi
1,
Marco Cristiano
1,
Gianluca Foglietta
1,
Sara Carilli
1,
Martina Rossitto
2,
Barbara Lucignano
1,
Manuela Onori
1,
Maria Paola Ronchetti
3,
Andrea Dotta
3,
Andrea Campana
4,
Lorenzo Galletti
5,
Luca Di Chiara
5,
Alberto Villani
6,
Marta Luisa Ciofi Degli Atti
7,
Daniela Perrotta
8,
Corrado Cecchetti
9,
Massimiliano Raponi
10,
Carlo Federico Perno
1 and
Paola Bernaschi
1add Show full author list remove Hide full author list
1
Microbiology and Diagnostic Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
2
Multimodal Laboratory Medicine, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
3
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
4
Pediatrics Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
5
Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
6
General Pediatric and Infectious Disease Unit, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
7
Epidemiology, Clinical Pathways and Clinical Risk Unit, Medical Direction, Clinical Outcomes and Pathways Research Unit, Clinical Management and Technological Innovations Research Area, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
8
Intensive Care Unit and Surgical Unit, Palidoro Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
9
Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
10
Medical Direction, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Microorganisms 2025, 13(12), 2698; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122698
Submission received: 26 October 2025 / Revised: 21 November 2025 / Accepted: 24 November 2025 / Published: 26 November 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medically Relevant Fungi: Virulence Factors, and New Diagnostic and Treatment Approaches)
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Abstract

Candida viswanathii has been sporadically reported in Asia and South America but not in Europe. This study reports the first European outbreak of C. viswanathii in a paediatric hospital, outlining diagnostic challenges and containment measures. Fifteen C. viswanathii isolates were recovered from blood cultures of consecutive pediatric patients admitted to intensive care units between April and August 2025. Identification was performed using MALDI-TOF MS, chromogenic media, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and whole-genome sequencing (WGS). Antifungal susceptibility testing was performed by broth microdilution. All isolates were initially misidentified as C. tropicalis by MALDI-TOF MS and undetected by the FilmArray BCID2 panel. WGS confirmed C. viswanathii, and FT-IR analysis revealed clonally related strains, indicating an outbreak. Colonies displayed a distinct deep-blue color on chromogenic CHROMagar™ medium. Elevated fluconazole minimum inhibitory concentrations were observed, while isolates remained susceptible to echinocandins and amphotericin B. A multidisciplinary infection-control response halted transmission within four weeks. This investigation documents the first C. viswanathii outbreak in Europe, highlighting diagnostic limitations of current commercial tools and the need for updated databases. Integration of FT-IR spectroscopy and WGS facilitated outbreak detection and containment, underscoring the importance of advanced diagnostics and surveillance for emerging fungal pathogens.
Keywords: Candida viswanathii; diagnostic challenges; MALDI-TOF MS; FT-IR spectroscopy; whole-genome sequencing; antifungal susceptibility testing Candida viswanathii; diagnostic challenges; MALDI-TOF MS; FT-IR spectroscopy; whole-genome sequencing; antifungal susceptibility testing

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MDPI and ACS Style

Vrenna, G.; Fox, V.; Cortazzo, V.; Raimondi, S.; Cristiano, M.; Foglietta, G.; Carilli, S.; Rossitto, M.; Lucignano, B.; Onori, M.; et al. When Conventional Methods Fail: First Detection of a Candida viswanathii Outbreak in Europe in a Pediatric Hospital Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing and FT-IR Spectroscopy. Microorganisms 2025, 13, 2698. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122698

AMA Style

Vrenna G, Fox V, Cortazzo V, Raimondi S, Cristiano M, Foglietta G, Carilli S, Rossitto M, Lucignano B, Onori M, et al. When Conventional Methods Fail: First Detection of a Candida viswanathii Outbreak in Europe in a Pediatric Hospital Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing and FT-IR Spectroscopy. Microorganisms. 2025; 13(12):2698. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122698

Chicago/Turabian Style

Vrenna, Gianluca, Valeria Fox, Venere Cortazzo, Serena Raimondi, Marco Cristiano, Gianluca Foglietta, Sara Carilli, Martina Rossitto, Barbara Lucignano, Manuela Onori, and et al. 2025. "When Conventional Methods Fail: First Detection of a Candida viswanathii Outbreak in Europe in a Pediatric Hospital Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing and FT-IR Spectroscopy" Microorganisms 13, no. 12: 2698. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122698

APA Style

Vrenna, G., Fox, V., Cortazzo, V., Raimondi, S., Cristiano, M., Foglietta, G., Carilli, S., Rossitto, M., Lucignano, B., Onori, M., Ronchetti, M. P., Dotta, A., Campana, A., Galletti, L., Chiara, L. D., Villani, A., Ciofi Degli Atti, M. L., Perrotta, D., Cecchetti, C., ... Bernaschi, P. (2025). When Conventional Methods Fail: First Detection of a Candida viswanathii Outbreak in Europe in a Pediatric Hospital Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing and FT-IR Spectroscopy. Microorganisms, 13(12), 2698. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13122698

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