Systemic protothecosis was diagnosed in 17 Australian dogs between 1988 and 2005. There was a preponderance of young-adult (median 4 years), medium- to large-breed dogs. Females (12/17 cases) and Boxer dogs (7 cases, including 6 purebreds and one Boxer cross) were over-represented. Sixteen of 17 dogs died, with a median survival of four months. A disproportionate number of cases...
A recent case of canine histoplasmosis, the first confirmed case of disseminated infection accompanied by carcinoma in Japan, was diagnosed by clinical characteristics, histopathological examination, chest radiographs, ocular fundoscopy and molecular biological data. The clinical manifestations were not limited to cutaneous symptoms but were referable to disseminated infection...
We present a case of cerebral zygomycosis that did not respond to standard treatment with amphotericin B or amphotericin B lipid complex. The patient was eventually cured through a combination of surgery and the use of high dose liposomal amphotericin B. Since penetration of the central nervous system by amphotericin B is poor the application of high dose therapy may be useful in...
We established a novel murine model of pharyngeal candidiasis maintaining stable yeast population and local symptoms characteristic of pharyngeal thrush. The persistent Candida-infection was prolonged by inhalation of beclomethasone dipropionate corticosteroid. The severity of infection lesions was evaluated by determining viable cell number of Candia albicans and scores...
Infections of the skin, hair and nails by dermatophyte fungi are common in developed and developing countries alike. However, the species involved and the resulting clinical entities vary both geographically and with time. We have surveyed 15,333 dermatophytes obtained from primary isolations at the Mycology Reference Laboratory, Bristol, UK from 1980 through 2005. Several...
Aspergillus fumigatus, a pathogenic mould causing a wide range of diseases including aspergillosis, produces a series of toxic substances which appear to act in an additive and/or synergic way on cells. Aspergillosis generally occurs in immunocompromised hosts or is associated with organ transplantation. From the muscul skeleton system the vertebrae, ribs and orbit are the most...
The focus of this review is the evolution of biochemical phenotypic yeast identification methods with emphasis on conventional approaches, rapid screening tests, chromogenic agars, comprehensive commercial methods, and the eventual migration to genotypic methods. As systemic yeast infections can be devastating and resistance is common in certain species, accurate identification...
In the present study, we determined the incidence of dermatophyte species causing superficial mycoses among outpatients referred to the Department of Dermatology of the “La Sapienza” University of Rome between 2002 and 2004. Of the 3160 subjects studied, 1275 (40.3%) were positive for fungal infection, but only 252 (19.7%) of these had infections caused by dermatophytes. The...
Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II alleles are involved in antigen processing and in the presentation of antigens to T lymphocytes. Few studies have investigated HLA genes in paracoccidioidomycosis. In the present investigation, we analyzed the distribution of the HLA class II alleles DRB1 and DQB1 in 45 healthy volunteers and in 80 patients with paracoccidioidomycosis. The...
Indoor mould development can occur following the accumulation of free water associated with a susceptible building material. Upon entry of viable fungal propagules from outdoors, the fungus becomes attached to a susceptible substrate. Vegetative growth begins if the appropriate environmental conditions exist, the primary ones being ample free water and a susceptible substrate...
Sir, We would like to acknowledge Dr Conti-Diaz's attentive reading and intelligent observations concerning our report in Medical Mycology1. We agree that
Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is the most prevalent systemic mycosis in Latin America. The experimental murine model has been used to approach the disease, with susceptible and resistant mice strains that reproduce most of the main human immunological features. Since the hypergammaglobulinemia observed in susceptible mice and humans might have an influence on B1 cells, we...
The emergence of new fungal pathogens and the resurgence of mycotic diseases that had previously been uncommon is a serious and growing public health problem. This review examines the factors involved in the emergence or re-emergence of several mycotic diseases, including coccidioidomycosis and cryptococcosis, over the past two decades. New approaches to prevention and control...
Cerebral blastomycosis is a rarely reported disease. We report three cases of cerebral blastomycosis previously treated with standard antifungal therapy, which were subsequently successfully treated with voriconazole. The first is a 29-year-old man who initially presented with concomitant cutaneous and osseous blastomycosis; the second is a 50-year-old man who initially presented...
While described in the past, the frequency and degree of fatigue associated with symptomatic coccidioidomycosis has never been quantified. Using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), severe fatigue (FSS score = 41) was found in 65% of cases of active coccidioidomycosis compared to 42% in cohort of control subjects with chronic medical diseases (P=0.024). Fatigue in patients with...
We report a case of cutaneous mucormycosis in a healthy, immunocompetent young girl (age 14 years). The patient had a 5-year history of a slowly enlarging, erythematous plaque with slight elevated, scaling, circinate borders on the right thigh. Histopathology showed a granulomatous infiltrate with broad, pale, non-septate hyphae. Mycological study identified Mucor hiemalis (Wehmer).
We describe a case of blastomycosis in a diabetic patient from South India who had visited Milwaukee, Wisconsin, an endemic area for blastomycosis in the USA. After his return to Bangalore, India, the patient developed intermittent fever of moderate to high grade, cough, loss of weight and appetite, and abscesses in the left cubital fossa and thigh regions. Systemic examination...
Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) is a serious opportunistic infection mainly affecting seriously immunocompromised patients. The major risk factor is prolonged granulocytopenia. Most literature on the epidemiology and clinical impact of Aspergillus spp. infections concern patients with hematological malignancies, cancer, stem cell transplantation and solid organ transplant...
Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) is a Th2 allergic hypersensitivity lung disease due to bronchial colonization of Aspergillus fumigatus that affects 1–2% of asthmatic and 7–9% of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. We hypothesize that genetic risk factors predispose these patients to develop ABPA. We previously reported HLA-DR2 and DR5 restriction as a risk factor for...
Medical mycology is a relatively young sub-discipline of medicine, institutionalized principally after the Second World War. In this paper, I will trace the process leading to the establishment of medical mycology in the United States, United Kingdom and Japan, three of the most important players in the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology (ISHAM) today. Throughout...
There has been an increased interest in the use of therapeutic granulocyte transfusion in recent years because premedication of donors with granulocyte colony stimulating factors produces much higher doses of granulocytes for transfusion. Other factors which influence the outcome of transfusion include the types of infection being treated, the likelihood of recipient marrow...
The optimal therapy for invasive aspergillosis (IA) is unknown, and there is little agreement on the exact antifungal management of IA. The previously stagnant landscape of antifungal choices for IA is rapidly changing with newer antifungals and newer targets. While amphotericin B had historically been the preferred therapy, recent studies support voriconazole as primary therapy...
Caspofungin, the main representative of the echinocandin family has undergone a clinical experience that covers gradually the whole spectrum of the standard care of invasive aspergillosis (IA). Caspofungin salvage therapy in cases of previous therapy refractoriness or intolerance resulted in a 45% response rate. Empiric therapy with caspofungin compared with L-AMB in neutropenic...
Three classes of antifungals – the polyenes, the echinocandins, and the extended spectrum azoles – are now availabel for treating invasive aspergillosis (IA). New agents and formulations in these classes offer the possibility of decreased toxicity and improved outcomes. With the availability of newer antifungals, clinicians are challenged to understand the advantages and...
Drug interactions are a common and recurring problem in immunocompromised patients with aspergillosis. While the introduction of new antifungals has expanded opportunities for lowering drug toxicity, virtually all antifungal regimens still carry the risk for pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions. Drug interactions affecting the pharmacokinetics of antifungals used in...