Fungi Flashcards
What is a Fungi?
A spore forming eukaryote that lacks chlorophyll
What substance is commonly found in fungal membranes?
Sterol
What is sterol?
Steroid alcohol
What is the main sterol found in fungal membranes?
Ergosterol
What are the three major groups of fungi?
Basidomycetes
Ascomycetes
Zygomycetes
Describe the structure of a Zygomycetes
A rough walled zygote containing multiple zygospores
What are yeasts?
Fungi that favor a unicellular habit
What is condiium?
Nonmotile spores
When would conidiophore be released?
When the conditions are less favorable and the fungi begins to form spores
When would infection from a fungi be potentially fatal?
When it has infected immunosupperessed patients
What factors increase the pathogenicity of a host?
Warm, moist environments
Any immunosupression
What conditions cause immunosuppression?
AIDS
HIV
Leukemia
What are the risk factors of candidiasis?
Age Antibiotic therapy Endocrine disorders Immune suppression Surgery
What is the most common type of candida species causing infection?
Candia albicans
What are the main causative species of aspergillosis?
Aspergillus fumigatus
What disease can aspergillosis cause?
Asthma
What kind of fungi is apergillus?
A mould
What is the main causative species of cryptococcosis?
Cryptococcus neoformans
What diseases are caused by Cryptococcus spp?
Meningitis
What investigations are used to diagnose fungal infections?
Direct smear
Detection of fungal antibodies
Culture
What are the different classes of anti-fungal drugs?
Triazoles
polyenes
flucytosine
What do anti-fungal drugs target?
Sterols in the fungal membrane
