International Journal of Health Sciences & Research (www.ijhsr.org) 34 Vol.8; Issue: 7; July 2018 International Journal of Health Sciences and Research www.ijhsr.org ISSN: 2249-9571 Original Research Article Screening of the Sap1 Gene of Candida Albicans in Oropharyngeal Cancer Patients in Tertiary Care Unit of Kanpur Ramesh Yadav 1 , R Sujatha 2 , Ajay Bhagoliwal 3 , Anil Kumar 4 1 Ph.D. Scholar, 2 Professor and Head, Department of Microbiology, Rama Medical College and Research Centre, Mandhana Kanpur (UP) India. 3 Professor, Department of Community Medicine, 4 Assistant Professor, Central Research Laboratory, Rama Medical College, Hospital and Research Centre, Mandhana, Kanpur (UP) India. Corresponding Author: Anil Kumar ABSTRACT Background: In the oral cancer patients because of the immune-suppression there is high risk of Candida albicans infection. The aim of this study was to identify presence of C. albicans in the oral mucosa of 150 patients in Kanpur population. Methods: This is a prospective study from the oral and maxillofacial OPD of Rama hospital and Research Centre, Kanpur. Swabs were collected and cultured into Sabouraud dextrose agar medium. Presence of Candida species was confirmed microscopically as well as biochemically according to standard procedure. The presence of SAP1 gene was confirmed by isolating RNA and preparing cDNA followed by cDNA amplification by agarose gel electrophoresis. Results: C. albicans was found the most common species in oropharyngeal cancer patients (42%). The presence of SAP1 was confirmed in the 24 isolates (8%). Conclusions: Detection of SAP1 gene can help in the treatment and prognosis of C. albicans in the immune-compromised patients especially in oropharyngeal cancer patients. Keywords: Oropharyngeal cancer, Virulence, Candida albicans. INTRODUCTION Candida species are eukaryotic opportunistic pathogens that reside on the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract as well as the mouth, oesophagus and vagina. [1] The frequency and prevalence of Candida albicans infections are common chiefly in the large population of immune- compromised patients. [2] C. albicans belong to the normal microbiota of an individual’s mucosal oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract and vagina, [3] and are accountable for different clinical manifestations from mucocutaneous overgrowth to bloodstream infections. [4] The C. albicans is commensal in healthy humans and may cause systemic infection in immune-compromised situations due to their great adaptability to different host niches. There are 17 different Candida species are common to be aetiological agents of human infection however, more than 70% of persistent infections are caused by Candida albicans. [5] The expanding population of immune- compromised patients that use intravenous catheters, total parenteral nutrition, invasive procedures and the increasing use of broad- spectrum antibiotics, cytotoxic chemotherapies and transplantation are factors that contribute to the increase of these infections. [6] The pathogenicity of C. albicans species is attributed to certain