Pathogenesis of Coccidioidomycosis
Abstract
Coccidioidomycosis is a systemic fungal infection endemic to the American Southwest, caused by Coccidioides immitis and Coccidioides posadasii. The infection has a wide variety of clinical manifestations in humans, from asymptomatic infection to severe disease. Infection occurs through inhalation of fungal spores, leading to primary pulmonary infection and occasionally to hematogenous dissemination to other sites. Both fungal and host factors contribute to pathogenesis of this infection. Cellular and innate immune responses are involved in the protective response in both humans and mice. This rev...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 24, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Gastrointestinal Mucormycosis in Neonates: a Review
Abstract
Gastrointestinal mucormycosis is a rare but nearly always fatal disease and accounts for more than half of all mucormycosis infections among neonates. Premature birth is the primary risk factor, though malnutrition, hyperglycemia, acidosis, asphyxia, corticosteroid use, recent surgery, instrumentation with orogastric or nasogastric tubes, and exposure to contaminated products have also been implicated. A combination of impaired mucosal integrity and an immature immune system likely contribute to development of infection. Clinical manifestations can mimic necrotizing enterocolitis and can include ...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 21, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Epidemiology of Scedosporiosis
Abstract
Infections due to Scedosporium/Pseudallescheria species are increasingly recognized in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent hosts. Patients with organ and stem cell transplants and malignancy are at high risk for infection. Infection is also acquired through trauma and near-drowning incidents. Scedosporium apiospermum complex and Lomentospora prolificans (previously Scedosporium prolificans) account for most infections. Increasing use of sequencing-based molecular tools to identify these fungi has enabled better understanding of species-specific differences in geographical distribution, cli...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 18, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Epidemiological Aspects of Sporotrichosis Epidemic in Brazil
Abstract
Generally, in Brazil, the transmission of sporotrichosis is by traumatic inoculation of fungi with the handling of organic matter. However, since the late 1990s, sporotrichosis in the great metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro has become an urban endemic/epidemic zoonotic phenomenon, with transmission from infected cats to humans. Middle-aged housewives are the most affected population, particularly from deprived social strata. With the consolidation of the epidemic, vulnerable groups have been affected and the most striking group is people with HIV infection because of the superimposed burdens of...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 14, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Hyperendemia of Sporotrichosis in the Brazilian Southeast: Learning From Clinics and Therapeutics
This article is intended to review the main aspects of clinical and therapeutic approaches that have been learned from the epidemics. (Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports)
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 12, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Cutaneous Mucormycosis: Mycological, Clinical, and Therapeutic Aspects
Abstract
Cutaneous mucormycosis (CM) is caused by ubiquitous filamentous fungi belonging to the order Mucorales. It is a rare, emerging mycosis, with increasing incidence since the last two decades, only surpassed by rhinocerebral and pulmonary mucormycosis. CM can be further classified in primary and secondary clinical forms. Primary cases can be seen on immunocompetent patients, frequently due to traumatic injuries, while in immunocompromised patients (those with diabetes mellitus or hematologic malignancies), lesions can arise at catheter insertion sites or after the use of contaminated adhesive tapes....
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 11, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Isavuconazonium Sulfate: a Novel Antifungal Agent
Abstract
Isavuconazonium sulfate is an orally or intravenously administered water-soluble prodrug that rapidly converts to the active triazole antifungal agent isavuconazole in the systemic circulation. Isavuconazole has broad antifungal activity that includes Candida, Aspergillus spp., and Mucorales. Isavuconazole offers several advantages over previous broad-spectrum triazole antifungals. The drug is well-absorbed from the oral capsule and does not appear to be significantly impacted by food intake or alterations in gastric acidity. The intravenous formulation does not require the use of a renally elimi...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 10, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
The Beta- d -glucan Test: Time to Re-Visit Its Utility in IFI Diagnosis
Abstract
Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are life-threatening complications both in hemato-oncological and intensive care unit (ICU) patients, and early diagnosis is crucial for outcome. Culture-based methods for the diagnosis of IFI have limited performance, and newer surrogate markers with improved sensitivity and specificity are needed to enable earlier diagnosis and to provide prognostic information and/or permit response monitoring. Fungal biomarkers such as galactomannan (GM) and 1,3-β-d-glucan (BDG) have been increasingly utilized in the last decade for an early and accurate diagnosis of these i...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 10, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Neonatal Candidiasis: New Insights into an Old Problem at a Unique Host-Pathogen Interface
Abstract
Candida species are the leading cause of invasive fungal infections in premature infants. Associated with substantial morbidity and mortality, these infections represent serious and sometimes catastrophic complications in the course of hospitalization of a preterm infant in the neonatal intensive care unit. Although virulence factors of Candida and the host defense mechanisms that are important in protection from candidiasis have been the subject of intensive study, considerably less is known about the features of this disease that are specific to premature neonates. A...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - September 7, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Majocchi’s Granuloma (Dermatophytic Granuloma): Updated Therapeutic Options
Abstract
Majocchi’s granuloma (MG) is a rare, well-recognized, deep skin infection caused by dermatophyte, which can be seen in immunosuppressed as well as immunocompetent individuals. It is primarily caused by dermatophytes, most commonly Trichophyton rubrum; however, occasionally other Trichophyton sp., Trichosporon sp., Aspergillus sp., and Phoma sp. are involved. Diagnosis is based on clinical, mycological, and histological characteristics. This review focuses on clinical characteristics of MG and diagnosis and therapeutic options of MG. (Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports)
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - August 18, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Susceptibility Testing Agents of Subcutaneous Mycoses (Sporotrichosis and Chromoblastomycosis)
Abstract
Until the last decade, techniques for antifungal susceptibility testing were not well standardized, making it difficult to evaluate the relationship between minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) test results and clinical outcome. The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) developed and published reference methods for susceptibility testing of yeast that culminated with the M27-A3 microdilution and the M44-A disk testing methods, as well as interpretive susceptibility break points for triazoles and echinocandins against Candida species. On the other hand, both CLSI (M38-A2) and EUCAST...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - August 17, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Dermatophytosis, Trends in Epidemiology and Diagnostic Approach
Abstract
Dermatophytes are amongst the most common fungal agents causing superficial skin infections. The epidemiology of dermatophytosis has changed during the last century under the influence of socioeconomic factors, modern life, intensification of travel, migration of populations from the southern to the northern hemisphere. As result, Trichophyton rubrum has become the most frequent species worldwide, causing mainly tinea pedis and tinea unguium, while Microsporum canis is still the main agent in tinea corporis and capitis in Mediterranean countries. However, the prevalence of anthropophilic dermatop...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - August 8, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Children and Sand Play: Screening of Potential Harmful Microorganisms in Sandboxes, Parks, and Beaches
Abstract
Sand serves as a reservoir for potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Children, a high-risk group, can acquire infections from sand in sandboxes, recreational areas, and beaches. This paper reviews the microbes in sands, with an emphasis on fungi. Recreational areas and beach sands have been found to harbor many types of fungi and microbes. A newly emerging group of fungi of concern include the black yeast-like fungi. After establishing that sand is a reservoir for fungi, clinical manifestations of fungal infections are described with an emphasis on ocular and ear infections. Overall, we recommen...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - August 1, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
An Approach to a Pulmonary Infiltrate in Solid Organ Transplant Recipients
Abstract
The onset of a pulmonary infiltrate in a solid organ transplant (SOT) recipient is both a challenging diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. We outline the potential aetiologies of a pulmonary infiltrate in a SOT recipient, with particular attention paid to fungal pathogens. A diagnostic and empirical therapy approach to a pulmonary infiltrate, especially invasive fungal disease (IFD) in SOT recipients, is provided. (Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports)
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - July 11, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Diagnosis of Fusarium Infections: Approaches to Identification by the Clinical Mycology Laboratory
Abstract
Infections caused by the genus Fusarium have emerged over the past decades and range from onychomycosis and keratitis in healthy individuals to deep and disseminated infections with high mortality rates in immune-compromised patients. As antifungal susceptibility can differ between the different Fusarium species, identification at species level is recommended. Several clinical observations as hyaline hyphae in tissue, necrotic lesions in the skin and positive blood tests with fungal growth or presence of fungal cell wall components may be the first hints for fusariosis. Many laboratories rely on ...
Source: Current Fungal Infection Reports - July 1, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
