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Emerging Microbes & Infections Dec 2021species are wood-inhabiting fungi and emerging opportunistic pathogens causing phaeohyphomycosis. In this study, we isolated a dematiaceous fungus, HKU44, from the...
species are wood-inhabiting fungi and emerging opportunistic pathogens causing phaeohyphomycosis. In this study, we isolated a dematiaceous fungus, HKU44, from the subhepatic abscess pus and drain fluids of a liver transplant recipient with post-transplant biliary and hepatico-jejunostomy bypass strictures. Histology of the abscess wall biopsy showed abundant fungal hyphae. The patient survived after a second liver transplant and antifungal therapy. On SDA, HKU44 grew initially as white powdery colonies which turned beige upon maturation. Hyphae were septate and hyaline. Phialides were monophialidic and laterally located, generally closely associated to a cluster of conidia which were usually reniform. Phylogenetic analyses showed that HKU44 is most closely related to, but distinct from, and . These suggested that HKU44 is a novel species, for which the name sp. nov. is proposed. Antifungal susceptibility testing showed that species possessed high MICs/MECs for fluconazole, 5-flucytosine and the echinocandins; whereas they exhibited a high strain-to-strain variability to the susceptibilities to the other triazoles. As for amphotericin B, ∼65% of the strains had low MICs (≤1 µg/mL). DNA sequencing should be performed to accurately identify fungi with -like morphologies, so is antifungal susceptibility testing for patients with infections.
Topics: Abscess; Aged; Antifungal Agents; Ascomycota; DNA, Fungal; Echinocandins; Fluconazole; Flucytosine; Humans; Male; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Phaeohyphomycosis; Phylogeny; Sequence Analysis, DNA
PubMed: 33337289
DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2020.1866955 -
Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy :... Dec 2019Chromoblastomycosis (CBM) is a chronic cutaneous and subcutaneous fungal infection caused by certain dematiaceous fungi (usually Fonsecaea, Phialophora, or...
Chromoblastomycosis (CBM) is a chronic cutaneous and subcutaneous fungal infection caused by certain dematiaceous fungi (usually Fonsecaea, Phialophora, or Cladophialophora). Histologically, CBM is characterized by the presence of medlar bodies. However, the diagnosis is difficult because of the rarity of these pathognomonic presentations and the wide variety of presentations. Treatment of these infections is challenging as it lacks standardization. Herein, we report a case of chromoblastomycosis caused by Phialophora, in a 42-year-old immunocompetent male agriculturist from the humid and subtropical region of southern China. He had a 3-month history of pneumonia with intermittent fever, coughing, and expectoration. The infection subsequently spread to the bone and lymph nodes forming deep lesions and eventually resulting in osteolysis and lymphadenectasis. These subcutaneous nodules were observed after 9 months. Antifungal treatment was administered for 20 months leading to clinical improvement before the patient was lost to follow-up. This case is unique because such deep lesions are rare in immunocompetent individuals and because the initial onset was associated with pneumonia.
Topics: Administration, Intravenous; Administration, Oral; Adult; Antifungal Agents; Chromoblastomycosis; Drug Therapy, Combination; Fever; Humans; Lung; Lymph Nodes; Male; Osteolysis; Phialophora; Pneumonia; Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography; Tibia; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 31229375
DOI: 10.1016/j.jiac.2019.05.002 -
JAAD Case Reports Oct 2022
PubMed: 36117779
DOI: 10.1016/j.jdcr.2022.07.047 -
PeerJ 2024Conventional biofilters, which rely on bacterial activity, face challenges in eliminating hydrophobic compounds, such as aromatic compounds. This is due to the low... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
BACKGROUND
Conventional biofilters, which rely on bacterial activity, face challenges in eliminating hydrophobic compounds, such as aromatic compounds. This is due to the low solubility of these compounds in water, which makes them difficult to absorb by bacterial biofilms. Furthermore, biofilter operational stability is often hampered by acidification and drying out of the filter bed.
METHODS
Two bioreactors, a bacterial biofilter (B-BF) and a fungal-bacterial coupled biofilter (F&B-BF) were inoculated with activated sludge from the secondary sedimentation tank of the Sinopec Yangzi Petrochemical Company wastewater treatment plant located in Nanjing, China. For approximately 6 months of operation, a F&B-BF was more effective than a B-BF in eliminating a gas-phase mixture containing benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and -xylene (BTE-X).
RESULTS
After operating for four months, the F&B-BF showed higher removal efficiencies for toluene (T), ethylbenzene (E), benzene (B), and -X (-Xylene), at 96.9%, 92.6%, 83.9%, and 83.8%, respectively, compared to those of the B-BF (90.1%, 78.7%, 64.8%, and 59.3%). The degradation activity order for B-BF and F&B-BF was T > E > B > -X. Similarly, the rates of mineralization for BTE-X in the F&B-BF were 74.9%, 66.5%, 55.3%, and 45.1%, respectively, which were higher than those in the B-BF (56.5%, 50.8%, 43.8%, and 30.5%). Additionally, the F&B-BF (2 days) exhibited faster recovery rates than the B-BF (5 days).
CONCLUSIONS
It was found that a starvation protocol was beneficial for the stable operation of both the B-BF and F&B-BF. Community structure analysis showed that the bacterial genus and the fungal genus were both important in the degradation of BTE-X. The fungal-bacterial consortia can enhance the biofiltration removal of BTE-X vapors.
Topics: Xylenes; Filtration; Fungi; Benzene Derivatives; Bioreactors; Bacteria; Biodegradation, Environmental; Toluene; Benzene; China; Biofilms
PubMed: 38903883
DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17452 -
Medical Mycology Case Reports Mar 2023We report a case of subcutaneous mycosis in the form of a subcutaneous cyst of the index finger, successfully treated by surgery and posaconazole in an 84-year-old...
We report a case of subcutaneous mycosis in the form of a subcutaneous cyst of the index finger, successfully treated by surgery and posaconazole in an 84-year-old female kidney transplant patient. Intra-operative mycological analysis enabled the diagnosis of phaeohyphomycosis. is an environmental mold recently described in human pathology in cases of chromoblastomycosis. This is the first case of subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis due to in an immunocompromised patient.
PubMed: 36620427
DOI: 10.1016/j.mmcr.2022.12.003 -
Medical Mycology Mar 2024Chromoblastomycosis (CBM) and pheohyphomycosis (PHM) are the most common implantation mycoses caused by dematiaceous fungi. In the past, flucytosine (5-FC) has been used...
Chromoblastomycosis (CBM) and pheohyphomycosis (PHM) are the most common implantation mycoses caused by dematiaceous fungi. In the past, flucytosine (5-FC) has been used to treat CBM, but development of resistance is common. Carmofur belongs to the same class as 5-FC and has in vitro inhibitory activity against the main agents of CBM and PHM. The aim of this study was to compare the action of these two pyrimidine analog drugs against CBM and PHM agents. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the selectivity index based on cytotoxicity tests of these two drugs against some agents of these mycoses were determined, with carmofur presenting a higher selectivity index than 5-FC. Carmofur demonstrated here synergistic interactions with itraconazole and amphotericin B against Exophiala heteromorpha, Fonsecaea pedrosoi, Fonsecaea monophora, and Fonsecaea nubica strains. Additionally, carmofur plus itraconazole demonstrated here synergism against a Phialophora verrucosa strain. To evaluate the development of carmofur resistance, passages in culture medium containing subinhibitory concentrations of this pyrimidine analog were carried out, followed by in vitro susceptibility tests. Exophiala dermatitidis quickly developed resistance, whereas F. pedrosoi took seven passages in carmofur-supplemented medium to develop resistance. Moreover, resistance was permanent in E. dermatitidis but transient in F. pedrosoi. Hence, carmofur has exhibited certain advantages, albeit accompanied by limitations such as the development of resistance, which was expected as with 5-FC. This underscores its therapeutic potential in combination with other drugs, emphasizing the need for a meticulous evaluation of its application in the fight against dematiaceous fungi.
Topics: Humans; Antifungal Agents; Flucytosine; Itraconazole; Fungi; Chromoblastomycosis; Mycoses; Microbial Sensitivity Tests
PubMed: 38533658
DOI: 10.1093/mmy/myae029 -
PloS One 2024Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal human motor neuron disease leading to muscle atrophy and paralysis. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are...
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal human motor neuron disease leading to muscle atrophy and paralysis. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are associated with familial ALS (fALS). The SOD1 mutants in ALS have a toxic-gain of function by destabilizing the functional SOD1 homodimer, consequently inducing fibril-like aggregation with a cytotoxic non-native trimer intermediate. Therefore, reducing SOD1 oligomerization via chemical modulators is an optimal therapy in ALS. Here, we report the discovery of Phialomustin-B, an unsaturated secondary metabolite from the endophytic fungus Phialophora mustea, as a modulator of SOD1 aggregation. The crystal structure of the SOD1-Phialomustin complex refined to 1.90 Å resolution demonstrated for the first time that the ligand binds to the dimer interface and the lateral region near the electrostatic loop. The aggregation analyses of SOD1WT and the disease mutant SOD1A4V revealed that Phialomustin-B reduces cytotoxic trimerization. We propose that Phialomustin-B is a potent lead molecule with therapeutic potential in fALS.
Topics: Humans; Superoxide Dismutase-1; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis; Cytoskeleton; Muscular Atrophy
PubMed: 38446760
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298196