Paracoccidioides brasiliensis
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Fungi |
Division: | Ascomycota |
Class: | Eurotiomycetes |
Order: | Onygenales |
Family: | Ajellomycetaceae |
Genus: | Paracoccidioides |
Species: | P. brasiliensis
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Binomial name | |
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis (Splend.) F.P.Almeida (1930)
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Synonyms | |
Zymonema brasiliensis Splend. (1912) |
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis is a
History
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis was first discovered by Adolfo Lutz in 1908 in Brazil.[6] Although Lutz did not suggest a name for the disease caused by this fungus, he made note of structures he called "pseudococcidica" together with mycelium in cultures grown at 25 °C.[6] In 1912, Alfonse Splendore[7] proposed the name Zymonema brasiliense and described the features of the fungus in culture.[6] Finally in 1930, Floriano de Almeida created the genus Paracoccidioides to accommodate the species, noting its distinction from Coccidioides immitis.[6]
Physiology
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis is a nonphotosynthetic eukaryote with a rigid cell wall and organelles very similar to those of higher eukaryotes.[3][8] Being a dimorphic fungus, it has the ability to grow an oval yeast-like form at 37 °C and an elongated mycelial form produced at room temperature.[9] The mycelial and yeast phases differ in their morphology, biochemistry, and ultrastructure.[8] The yeast form contains large amounts of α-(1,3)-linked glucan.[10][page needed][11] The chitin content of the mycelial form is greater than that of the yeast form, but the lipid content of both phases is comparable.[10][page needed]
The yeast reproduces by asexual
Dimorphism
The mycelial form of P. brasiliensis can be converted to the yeast form in vitro by growth on
Ecology
Although the habitat of P. brasiliensis remains unknown, it is commonly associated with soils in which coffee is cultivated.[5][16][17] It has also been associated with the nine-banded armadillo, Dasypus novemcinctus.[18] The disease caused by P. brasiliensis is mostly geographically restricted to Latin American countries such as Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela, with the greatest number of cases seen in Brazil.[10] The endemic areas are characterized by hot, humid summers, dry temperate winters, average annual temperatures between 17 and 23 °C, and annual rainfall between 500 and 800 mm.[19] However, the precise ecology regularities of the fungus remain elusive, and P. brasiliensis has rarely been encountered in nature outside the human host.[3] One such rare example of environmental isolation was reported in 1971 by Maria B.de Albornoz and colleagues who isolated P. brasiliensis from samples of rural soil collected in Paracotos in the state of Miranda, Venezuela.[20] In in vitro studies, the fungus has been shown to grow when inoculated into soil and sterile horse or cow excrement.[21] The mycelial phase has also been shown to survive longer than the yeast phase in acidic soil.[22] Despite a sexual state not having been documented, molecular investigations suggest the existence of recombining populations of P. brasiliensis, potentially by means of an undiscovered sexual state.[23]
The existence of a sexual cycle in P. brasiliensis, is supported by both molecular and morphological data.[24] A comparative genome analysis with other well-studied fungi demonstrated the presence of sex-related genes in both the yeast and mycelial phases of P. brasiliensis.[24] Also crosses of isolates of different mating types led to the formation of young ascocarps (sexual structures) with constricted coiled hyphae related to the initial stage of mating.[24]
Epidemiology
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis causes a disease known as paracoccidioidomycosis characterized by slow, progressive granulomatous changes in the head mucosa, notably the nose and sinuses or the skin. Uncommonly, the disease affects the lymphatic system, the central nervous system, the gastrointestinal tract, or the skeletal system.[10] Due to the high proportion of cases affecting the oral mucosa, these tissues were originally thought to be the primary route of entry of fungus.[3] However, strong evidence now indicates the respiratory tract is the chief point of entry[10] and P. brasiliensis lung lesions occur in nearly a third of progressive cases.[25] The disease is not contagious.[10] Paracoccidioidomycosis is more frequently seen in adult males than females.[10][26] The hormone estrogen is thought to inhibit the transformation of the mycelial to the yeast form, as supported by in vitro experimental data, and this factor may account for the relative resistance of women to infection.[27]
Detection and surveillance
A number of
Clinical manifestations
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis causes mucous membrane ulceration of the mouth and nose with spread through the
References
- PMID 28746570.
- ISBN 0-8385-8529-9.
- ^ a b c d e Pan American Health Organization (October 1971). Paracoccidioidomycosis; Proceedings of the first Pan American symposium (1st ed.). Medellín, Colombia: Washington Pan American Health Organization. p. 325. Scientific Publication No. 254.
- PMID 8472249.
- ^ PMID 18777629.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-351-07532-9.
- ^ "Alfonso Splendore". Whonamedit? - A dictionary of medical eponyms. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
- ^ PMID 14045074.
- ^ ISBN 9780470177914.
- ^ ISBN 0812114639.
- PMID 5776517.
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- ISBN 9780203302934.
- PMID 17953742.
- PMID 16473563.
- ^ Borelli, D (1969). "Reservareas de algunos agentes de micosis". Med. Cutan. Iber. Lat. Am. 3: 367–370.
- S2CID 9245772.
- ^ Borelli, D (1961). "Hipotesis sobre ecologia de Paracoccidioides". Derm. Venez. 3: 130–132.
- PMID 5385156.
- PMID 16151188.
- ^ a b c Teixeira Mde M, Theodoro RC, Derengowski Lda S, Nicola AM, Bagagli E, Felipe MS. Molecular and morphological data support the existence of a sexual cycle in species of the genus Paracoccidioides. Eukaryot Cell. 2013 Mar;12(3):380-9. doi: 10.1128/EC.05052-11. Epub 2012 Nov 2. PMID 23125354; PMCID: PMC3629771
- PMID 5030174.
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- PMID 6425358.
- PMID 2592544.
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- S2CID 22151171.
- PMID 11446526.
- ^ ISBN 0721675867.
External links
- Paracoccidioides at the U.S. National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
- http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/jan2005.html