BackgroundThe organism C neoformans is an encapsulated yeast; its environmental niche has not been completely defined, although outbreaks of disease have been associated in particular with pigeon roosts and other large contaminated sites. There are two varieties of C neoformans, distinguished by antigenic differences in the outer capsule of the organism: serotypes A and D (C neoformans var neoformans, the most common strain) and serotypes B and C (C neoformans var gatti). Cryptococcus neoformans var …showed first 75 words of 1876 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1876 total…to phagocytic cells. With increased incubation times, the number of yeast cells per phagocytic cell increased for the encapsulated, but not the acapsular strain. Conclusion: intracellular localization has been associated with both control and persistence of infection The results demonstrated that intracellular residence was associated with multiple yeast cells per phagosome, a higher budding index, and the emergence of a yeast cellpopulation that was heterogeneous in size. This is indicative of intracellular replication in vivo.