Mycology Part 1A Flashcards
How are specimen collected for Cutaneous Mycoses? (I.e. Ringworm)
- Clean area with alcohol
- Collect hair by plucking from periphery of lesions
- Use edge of scalpel for skin scrapings
- Place in envelope or sterile petri dish
- Do not use tightly sealed containers
How are specimen collected for systemic and subcutaneous Mycoses?
- Collect exudate or material from edge of lesion
- Place in sterile, leak proof test tube for direct examination and culture
What is a Woods Lamp?
- Diagnostic method in mycology
- UV light - 366nm
- Yellow-green fluorescence of infected hairs or skin
- False positive with some medications
Which dermatophytes fluoresce under Wood’s Lamp?
-
Microsporum canis - animals
- 80% of ringworm in dogs and cats
- M. distortum - humans
- M. ferrugineum - humans
- M. audouinii - humans
How is Direct Examination of Mycoses work?
- Place sample on a slide with a few drops 10% NaOH or KOH
- Incubate for 15-30 minutes in a moist chamber
- Look for hyphae, arthrospores - Endothrix or Ectothrix spores
- False positives: oil or grease droplets
How are wet preparations (pus, exudates, etc) directly examined?
- Wet mount with New Methylene Blue or Lacto-Phenol Cotton Blue
- Stain with Gram, Geimsa, or other special stains
- Cryptococcus- India Ink preparations of CSF - thick capsule
What media should be used for the isolation of fungus?
- Dependent on the suspected fungus
-
Sabouraud Dextrose Agar: pH 5.6
- Inhibits many species of bacteria
-
Sabouraud/Cycloheximide/Chloramphenicol
- Inhibits many bacteria and contaminating fungi
-
Dermatophyte Test Medium (DTM)
- Dermatophytes - Red - Alkaline
- Other Fungi - Yellow - Acid
-
Potato Dextrose Agar
- Sporothrix schenkii - Black Colonies
-
Sabouraud Dextrose Agar: pH 5.6
How should fungi be incubated?
- Moist atmosphere to prevent drying of plates
- Incubate at room temperature or 25C
- 30 C for Candida spp
- T. verrucosum (bovine ringworm) 37C
- Diphasic fungi
- yeast or tissue form 37C
- Mycelial form 25C
What Biochemical Tests are available for Candida species?
- Sugar fermentation
- Sugar assimilation
- Commercial test kits - API system
What Immunologic Test are available for fungi?
- CMI response
- usually done by skin testing (Type IV hypersensitivity)
- Humoral response
- Histoplasmosis -AGID
- Blastomycosis - AGID
- Coccidioidomycosis -AGID
- Cryptococcosis - Latex Agglutination
- Aspergillosis - AGID
What are fungi Opportunists?
- May be primary or secondary pathogens under appropriate conditions
- Old, young, immunocompromised
- Individuals of low resistance
- Individuals on long term hormone, antibiotic, or steroid therapy
- Individuals who are debilitated
What are the significant Fungi Species?
- Mucor spp.
- Rhizopus spp.
- Absidia spp
- Aspergillus spp.
- Alternaria spp.
- Penicillium spp.
- Geotrichum spp.
- Fusarium spp.
What is Dermatomycosis?
- Cutaneous Mycoses
- Live on superficial parts of the host
- Non-Invasive
- Usually will not survive long in living tissue
- Will NOT survive in areas of intense inflammation
- Have Keratolytic activity
What is the Geographic Distribution of Dermatomycosis?
- World Wide
- More prevalent in tropical and sub-tropical climates
- Particularly prevalent in hot humid areas
What is the Prevalence of Dermatomycosis?
- Microsporum canis associated with:
- >90% of all Feline Ringworm
- >70% of all Canine Ringworm