Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi = Japanese Journal Of Medical Mycology[JOURNAL]
Sun
200 papers
[Antifungal activity of the novel adduct, GX-95, of silver with nanometer-scale particles to peptidic hydrolysates from collagen].
Yaguchi T, Takizawa K, Taguchi H … +5 more , Tanaka R, Kubota T, Kubota Y, Kubota M, Fukushima K
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17502845 · Publisher ↗
Silver has long been known to have an antimicrobial activity against bacteria and other microorganisms, and has been used as eating utensils, as dental fillings and so on. We developed a novel adduct, GX-95, of silver wi...
Silver has long been known to have an antimicrobial activity against bacteria and other microorganisms, and has been used as eating utensils, as dental fillings and so on. We developed a novel adduct, GX-95, of silver with nanometer-scale particles to peptidic hydrolysates from collagen. Antifungal activity of the adduct against pathogenic yeasts and filamentous fungi was examined in terms of minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs). GX-95 was found to possess strong and broad antifungal activities against all fungi examined in the following MICs: 0.25 to 0.31 microg/ml for Candida albicans including resistant strains to fluconazole, itraconazole and flucytosine, 0.05 to 0.2 microg/ml for Cryptococcus neoformans strains, 0.025 to 0.4 microg/ml for Aspergillus fumigatus strains, 0.4 microg/ml for Trichophyton rubrum, and 0.05 microg/ml for Cladophialophora carrionii.
[A case of black dot ringworm on the right forearm caused by Trichophyton tonsurans].
Fujita S, Mochizuki T
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17502844 · Publisher ↗
We report a case of black dot ringworm on the right forearm caused by Trichophyton (T.) tonsurans. A 16-year-old male high school Judo-wrestler visited our clinic on September 30, 2005, complaining of a round erythematos...
We report a case of black dot ringworm on the right forearm caused by Trichophyton (T.) tonsurans. A 16-year-old male high school Judo-wrestler visited our clinic on September 30, 2005, complaining of a round erythematosquamous eruption with a distinct margin on the right forearm. Black dots were observed in the lesion. KOH-Parker ink prepared direct microscopy revealed abundant large endotrix arthroconidia in the hair shaft. Culture yielded yellowish-brown colonies. The isolate produced numerous round, short club-shaped microconidia along the hyphae unstained with lactophenol cotton blue (resembling matchsticks) and chlamydospores. PCR-RFLP analysis of internal transcribed spacer regions of ribosomal DNA revealed a banding pattern compatible with T. tonsurans. The lesion was cured by daily administration of 125 mg of terbinafine for 13 weeks.
[A case of chromomycosis caused by Fonsecaea pedrosoi presenting as a small plaque on the left upper arm: a review of reported cases of dematiaceous fungal infection in Japan].
Kikuchi Y, Kondo M, Yaguchi H … +2 more , Hiruma M, Ikeda S
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17502843 · Publisher ↗
We report a case of a 67-year-old woman with chromomycosis on the left upper arm. The plaque was a very small, erythematous and scaly lesion with a diameter of 1.5 cm. Fonsecaea pedrosoi was isolated as the causal fungus...
We report a case of a 67-year-old woman with chromomycosis on the left upper arm. The plaque was a very small, erythematous and scaly lesion with a diameter of 1.5 cm. Fonsecaea pedrosoi was isolated as the causal fungus, and a number of Phialophora type conidia, the formation of which is considered rare, were observed. Treatment involved surgical excision of the lesion with a 5 mm margin. Follow up three years later revealed no recurrence. In Japan, 536 patients with chromomycosis were reported from 1955 to 2004. This consisted of 296 cases from 1955 to 1981 as reported by Fukushiro, and 240 cases from 1982 to 2004 as reviewed by us. Our examination of data showed that the most common causal fungi was F. pedrosoi with 137 cases (57.15%), followed by Exophiala jeanselmei with a total of 41 cases (17.15%), other fungal species comprised of 16 cases (6.7%), Phialophora verrucosa in 9 cases ( 3.8%) and E. dermatitidis in 4 cases (1.7%). Compared to the previous report by Fukushiro, the incidence of infection with E. jeanselmei had increased. Of the 235 cases we reported, the site of infection involved: upper extremities in 91 (38.7%), face and neck in 42 (17.9%), buttocks in 41 (17.4%), lower extremities in 33 (14%) and body in 23 (9.8%). Compared to Fukushiro's report, cases affecting the lower extremities had decreased, whilst cases involving the buttocks had increased. Overall, the treatment for chromomycosis was either oral administration of antifungal agents, excision, thermotherapy, or a combination of these methods.
[Clinical study of 57 cases of infection with Trichophyton tonsurans examined at a dermatology clinic in Saga Prefecture, Japan].
Shinoda H, Nishimoto K
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17502842 · Publisher ↗
This paper is a clinical study of 57 cases of infection with Trichophyton tonsurans (T. tonsurans) examined in our clinic between January 2004 and July 2006. The patients were 31 high school students, 19 junior high scho...
This paper is a clinical study of 57 cases of infection with Trichophyton tonsurans (T. tonsurans) examined in our clinic between January 2004 and July 2006. The patients were 31 high school students, 19 junior high school students, 2 primary school students, 1 kindergartener, and 4 sports instructors. The male:female ratio was 51:6. Most patients were male Judo practitioners. Patients were clinically categorized as follows: 13 cases of tinea capitis {10 containing black dot ringworms (BDR), 2 scaled, and 1 with inflammation}, 41 cases of tinea corporis, 1 case of tinea manum, and 7 carriers. Five patients displayed both tinea capitis and tinea corporis. Among tinea corporis patients, 21 displayed annular erythemas, whereas 19 displayed small circular eythemas characterized by a lightly inflamed non-typical rush. In 3 tinea corporis cases, we sampled T. tonsurans from hair grown inside the skin rash. Eleven of the tinea corporis patients displayed multiple lesions. Compared to patients with singular lesions, these 11 cases had a larger degree of comorbidity with BDR or HB positivity. A 6-8 week treatment with griseofulvin was efficient in 90% of the tinea capitis cases. Tinea corporis patients were healed following a 4-9 week treatment with topical antifungals and griseofulvin. When examining T. tonsurans infections, patients with BDR or lightly inflamed tinea corporis as well as asymptomatic carriers can be easily overlooked or misdiagnosed. Therefore, we suggest that mycological examination, including careful observation of the rash and KOH mount, is essential in these cases.
[Taxonomy and phylogenetic analysis of infectious Nocardia strains isolated from clinical samples].
Kageyama A, Mikami Y
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17502841 · Publisher ↗
Following recent advances in medical technology, the increased number of immunocompromised patients such as those with organ transplants has led to an increase in opportunistic infections due to Nocardia. Although nocard...
Following recent advances in medical technology, the increased number of immunocompromised patients such as those with organ transplants has led to an increase in opportunistic infections due to Nocardia. Although nocardiosis has been considered to be rare, recent reports indicate that the incidence of the infection is increasing. The Nocardia asteroides group is the principal source of infectious species, but the definition of species in Nocardia is problematic because species identification of N. asteroides has been based on mainly morphological and biochemical properties. Additionally, it was assumed that a clinical strain with properties that did not fully coincide with existing species was N. asteroides sensu lato. This caused problems in both clinical and taxonomical fields, and reclassification of N. asteroides sensu lato was necessary. Therefore, determination of the appropriate taxonomic position of N. asteroides sensu lato that is now classified as N. asteroides sensu stricto was conducted using a molecular phylogenetic method. From 1965 to 2001, twenty-two strains of N. asteroides sensu lato were isolated from clinical samples. The phylogenetic tree using 16S rDNA sequences and detailed biochemical characters on the 22 isolates was determined. Results revealed that nine strains should be reclassified into species other than N. asteroides sensu stricto, and we proposed nine new species of the genus Nocardia. In addition, we proposed eight other new species of the genus Nocardia from other samples; hence seventeen new species were proposed in total. We also reported the first infectious cases due to Nocardia beijingensis, Nocardia transvalensis and Nocardia pseudobrasiliensis in Japan.
[Abstracts of the 50th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Medical Mycology, Tokyo, Japan, October 21-22, 2006].
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17340761
Abstract loading — click title to view on PubMed.
In-vitro antifungal activities of sulfa drugs against clinical isolates of Aspergillus and Cryptococcus species.
Hanafy A, Uno J, Mitani H … +2 more , Kang Y, Mikami Y
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287722 · Publisher ↗
In vitro susceptibilities of ten clinical isolates, including five strains of Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii and five strains of Aspergillus fumigatus, were determined against nine sulfa drugs using a microdilution...
In vitro susceptibilities of ten clinical isolates, including five strains of Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii and five strains of Aspergillus fumigatus, were determined against nine sulfa drugs using a microdilution method. Among the five tested media, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values were observed only in YNB medium: no detectable level MIC value of less than 125 microg/ml was observed in the four remaining media against Cryptococcus species. Of the nine sulfa drugs, of which sulfaphenazole showed the highest antifungal activity, the MIC values for A. fumigatus and C. neoformans var. grubii were, respectively, 64 microg/ml and 4-8 microg/ml, suggesting high susceptibility of C. neoformans to sulfa drugs.
Molecular phylogenetics of multiple genes on Aspergillus section Fumigati isolated from clinical specimens in Japan.
Yaguchi T, Horie Y, Tanaka R … +3 more , Matsuzawa T, Ito J, Nishimura K
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287721 · Publisher ↗
A phylogenetic study based on sequence analysis of the beta-tubulin, hydrophobin and calmodulin genes was performed in 19 strains of Aspergillus fumigatus and related species isolated from clinical specimens in Japan. Co...
A phylogenetic study based on sequence analysis of the beta-tubulin, hydrophobin and calmodulin genes was performed in 19 strains of Aspergillus fumigatus and related species isolated from clinical specimens in Japan. Correlations between detailed morphology and phylogeny were examined. Species in the section Fumigati were divided into five clades: clade I, typical strains of A. fumigatus; clade II, species including A. lentulus and A. fumisynnematus; clade III, species including A. fumigatiaffinis and A. novofumigatus, clade IV, atypical strains of A. fumigatus including A. viridinutans; and clade V, species including A. brevipes, A. duricaulis and A. unilateralis. Most of the examined strains from clinical specimens in Japan clustered together in clade I and exhibit globose conidia with lobate-reticulate ornamentation. Other strains from clinical specimens were divided into two clades (clades II and IV). The strains in clades II and the six strains in clade IV exhibit conidia with microtuberculate ornamentation, while A. viridinutans-complex in clades IV and the strains in clade V have conidia with lobate-reticulate ornamentation. The six strains are clearly distinguished from A. viridinutans-complex and are considered to be related to Neosartorya udagawae. The maximal growth temperatures of clades I, II, IV and V were above 50 degrees C, 45 degrees C, 42 degrees C and 42 degrees C, respectively. These data are useful for classification of species within the Aspergillus section Fumigati.
Combined effect of heat, essential oils and salt on fungicidal activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes in a foot bath.
Inouye S, Uchida K, Nishiyama Y … +3 more , Hasumi Y, Yamaguchi H, Abe S
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287720 · Publisher ↗
This work was originally undertaken to determine the effective conditions of essential oils against Trichophyton mentagrophytes in vitro for the treatment of tinea pedis in a foot bath. Agar blocks implanted with T. ment...
This work was originally undertaken to determine the effective conditions of essential oils against Trichophyton mentagrophytes in vitro for the treatment of tinea pedis in a foot bath. Agar blocks implanted with T. mentagrophytes were immersed in 0.1% aqueous agar containing two-fold dilutions of essential oils with or without sodium chloride at 27 degrees C, 37 degrees C and 42 degrees C for 10 and 20 min. The number of surviving mycelia on the agar blocks was determined from the standard curves of the colony diameter and original inocula of the conidia. At the same time, the thermal effect on the cellular morphology was examined using SEM. Most fungal mycelia (99.7%) were killed after treatment at 42 degrees C for 20 min without essential oil. The fungicidal activity of essential oils was markedly enhanced by treating at 42 degrees C for 20 min as compared with that at 27 degrees C, showing 1/4 - 1/32-fold reduction of minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC to kill 99.99%). The order of the fungicidal activity of 11 essential oils was oregano, thyme thymol, cinnamon bark > lemongrass > clove, palmarose, peppermint, lavender > geranium Bourbon, tea tree > thyme geraniol oils. MFCs were further reduced to 1/2 - 1/8 by the addition of 10% sodium chloride. The salt effect was explained, at least partly, by an increase in mycelial adsorption of antifungal constituents in the presence of sodium chloride. Considerable hyphal damage was done at 27 degrees C by the essential oils, but no further alteration in morphology of the hyphae treated at 42 degrees C with or without oil was observed by SEM. The inhibitory effect of heat and oils was also observed against mycelia of T. rubrum and conidia of T. mentagrophytes. Thermotherapy combined with essential oils and salt would be promising to treat tinea pedis in a foot bath.
Isolation and characterization of a novel acid proteinase, tropiase, from Candida tropicalis IFO 0589.
Okumura Y, Inoue N, Nikai T
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287719 · Publisher ↗
A novel acid proteinase (Tropiase) was isolated from Candida tropicalis IFO 0589 by DE52-cellulose, and DEAE-Cosmogel column chromatographies. The purified tropiase gave a single band on disc polyacrylamide gel electroph...
A novel acid proteinase (Tropiase) was isolated from Candida tropicalis IFO 0589 by DE52-cellulose, and DEAE-Cosmogel column chromatographies. The purified tropiase gave a single band on disc polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme preparation had a molecular weight of 23,900, isoelectric point of pH 5.1, optimum pH range of 7 to 9 and possessed 208 amino acid residues. The enzyme hydrolyzed casein, fibrinogen, keratin and collagen. The purified tropiase demonstrated hemorrhagic and capillary permeability-increasing activities. Inhibition of tropiase occurred with leupeptin and N-bromosuccinimide, however, no inhibition was observed with alpha(2)-macroglobulin, soybean trypsin inhibitor, benzamidine-HCl or diisopropyl fluorophosphate.
Characterization and primary structure of elastase inhibitor, AFLEI, from Aspergillus flavus.
Okumura Y, Ogawa K, Uchiya K
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287718 · Publisher ↗
The amino acid sequence of elastase inhibitor, AFLEI, isolated from Aspergillus flavus was determined by the Edman sequencing procedure of peptides derived from digests utilizing clostripain. A molecular weight of 7,525....
The amino acid sequence of elastase inhibitor, AFLEI, isolated from Aspergillus flavus was determined by the Edman sequencing procedure of peptides derived from digests utilizing clostripain. A molecular weight of 7,525.8 was observed by TOF-MS. AFLEI contained 68 amino acid residues and has a calculated molecular weight of 7,526.2. The search for amino acid homology with other proteins demonstrated that amino acid residues 1 to 51 of AFLEI are 100% identical to residues 20 to 70 of the hypothetical protein Afu3g14940. The Michaelis constant (Km) for succinyl L-alanyl- L-alanyl- L-alanyl p-nitroanilide (STANA), and inhibition constant (Ki), for elastase of AFLEI, were found to be 6.7 x 10(2) microM and 4.0 x 10(-2) microM, respectively. Inhibitory activity was compared with six protease inhibitors (ulinastatin, nafamostat mesilate, sivelestat sodium hydrate, gabexate mesilate, elastatinal and elafin). The other six protease inhibitors demonstrated very weak inhibitory activity by comparison with AFLEI.
Trends in the epidemiology of invasive fungal infections.
Warnock DW
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2007 · PMID 17287717 · Publisher ↗
Invasive fungal infections have increased in importance, largely because of the increasing size of the population at risk. Candida species remain the fourth most important cause of hospital-acquired bloodstream infection...
Invasive fungal infections have increased in importance, largely because of the increasing size of the population at risk. Candida species remain the fourth most important cause of hospital-acquired bloodstream infections. Infections with Candida species other than C. albicans appear to have become more common, but significant geographic variation has been reported. Invasive aspergillosis and other mould infections are a leading cause of infection-related death in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients. Although Aspergillus fumigatus remains the most frequent cause of infection, A. terreus has emerged as an important pathogen, at least among certain populations. Despite marked reductions in the rates of AIDS-associated fungal infections, such as cryptococcosis, in the United States and other developed countries, the burden of these diseases in developing countries is large and increasing. Enhanced surveillance and reporting will be critical to improve our understanding of the importance of invasive fungal infections, to enable prioritization of research and prevention efforts, and to evaluate prevention strategies.
[Trichophyton tonsurans infection among judo practitioners who attended the National Junior High School Judo Tournament in Japan (2005): incidence and therapeutic response].
Suganami M, Hirose N, Shiraki Y … +2 more , Hiruma M, Ikeda S
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086166 · Publisher ↗
The spread of Trichophyton tonsurans infection among high school students and university undergraduates who practice Judo is an emerging problem in Japan and other countries. However, the extent of infection among Judo p...
The spread of Trichophyton tonsurans infection among high school students and university undergraduates who practice Judo is an emerging problem in Japan and other countries. However, the extent of infection among Judo practitioners in junior high school in Japan is unknown. We conducted an epidemiological study of T. tonsurans infection among students who participated in the national junior high school Judo tournament in 2005. Of the 1,039 tournament participants invited to undergo screening, 496 (218 boys and 278 girls) consented, and 45 participants (9.1%) were found to be positive by hairbrush culture. We found the following to be relative risk factors for T. tonsurans infection: 1) male gender, 2) frequent judo practice in groups at either a high school or a dojo, 3) presence of tinea corporis in practice partners, 4) history of tinea corporis, 5) classification in lower-weight categories. 45 culture positive subjects were offered treatment and re-examined by hairbrush culture 3 months later. All twelve of them had negative cultures after miconazole shampoo treatment. A half of 12 subjects who had systemic antifungal therapy with itraconazole had positive culture. These observations suggest that T. tonsurans infection is rapidly spreading among junior high school Judo players in Japan. We speculate that the outbreak is caused, at least in part, by ignorance of the disease among Judo students, coaches and officials due to the high incidence of carriers and the mild or asymptomatic form of disease seen in infected individuals. Appropriate measures should be taken immediately to prevent more severe outbreak of this disease.
The effect of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) on the growth of dermatophytes.
Randhawa MA
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086165 · Publisher ↗
Dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO) is frequently used as a solvent for antifungal drugs in various studies to determine their MICs. Reports on comparative evaluation of methods for the susceptibility testing of antifungal drugs ha...
Dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO) is frequently used as a solvent for antifungal drugs in various studies to determine their MICs. Reports on comparative evaluation of methods for the susceptibility testing of antifungal drugs have shown there is poor agreement among methods. Besides other factors which could cause variability in the results, one important factor might be the effect of DMSO on the growth of fungi. The effect of DMSO on the growth of some species of Candida has been reported in the literature. The present study aimed at determination of the effect of different concentrations of DMSO (0.125 to 10%) on the growth of dermatophytes by agar diffusion method. There was no growth of fungi in 10% DMSO, between 1.25 and 5% there was a rather linear dose-related inhibitory effect on the growth, significantly different from the controls, and below 1% there was a variable effect among the species. DMSO down to 0.25% significantly inhibited the growth of most strains of M. canis. The lower concentrations of DMSO, which apparently do not affect the growth of fungi, may potentiate the effect of antifungal drugs.
Isolation of Fonsecaea pedrosoi from the shell of the babassu coconut (Orbignya phalerata Martius) in the Amazon region of Maranhão Brazil.
Marques SG, Silva Cde M, Saldanha PC … +4 more , Rezende MA, Vicente VA, Queiroz-Telles F, Costa JM
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086164 · Publisher ↗
Fonsecaea pedrosoi, a dematiaceous fungus and the main causative agent of chromoblastomycosis, has been isolated in worldwide from different natural sources in regions where the disease is endemic. In the Amazon region o...
Fonsecaea pedrosoi, a dematiaceous fungus and the main causative agent of chromoblastomycosis, has been isolated in worldwide from different natural sources in regions where the disease is endemic. In the Amazon region of Maranhão, Brazil, where the disease is prevalent, the breaking of the babassu coconut (Orbignya phalerata Martius) represents an important agricultural activity. In order to determine the presence of this fungus on this plant and on other natural substrates, material was collected in the Fortaleza Village Municipality of Pinheiro, Maranhão, in April and September 2002. A total of 68 samples, including 18 (26.5%) obtained from the shell of the babassu coconut, were analyzed. Samples were cultured using a standard method. Isolates were identified based on macromorphological aspects of the colonies on Sabouraud dextrose agar and based on the micromorphology of the conidia after growth on potato dextrose agar. Exophiala sp. was the most prevalent fungus isolated from the different natural substrates analyzed, while Cladophialophora sp. was only isolated from decomposing wood. Fonsecaea pedrosoi was isolated from one sample of babassu coconut shell suggesting that this coconut represents an important source of infection of chromoblastomycosis during extraction of the plant product in this region.
[In vitro activities of antifungal drugs against clinical isolates of Trichophyton tonsurans].
Koga H, Nanjoh Y, Inoue K … +2 more , Makimura K, Tsuboi R
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086163 · Publisher ↗
To determine drug susceptibility of Trichophyton tonsurans endemic in Japan, in vitro MICs of antifungal drugs against a total of 10 clinical isolates of T. tonsurans collected from dermatophytosis patients were measured...
To determine drug susceptibility of Trichophyton tonsurans endemic in Japan, in vitro MICs of antifungal drugs against a total of 10 clinical isolates of T. tonsurans collected from dermatophytosis patients were measured by the agar dilution method and the broth microdilution method. The agar dilution method was not appropriate as the growth of T. tonsurans on the agar medium was too slow to determine drug activity, while the broth microdilution method was thought to be an appropriate method for this study. The MIC90 values determined by the broth microdilution method for terbinafine, itraconazole, miconazole and ketoconazole were 0.013, 0.1, 0.8 and 0.4 microg/ml, respectively. Meanwhile, the MIC90 values of lanoconazole and luliconazole, known to be antifungal drugs potent against dermatomycosis, were 0.00078 and 0.00039 microg/ ml, respectively. The drug susceptibility of these T. tonsurans isolates to the aforementioned antifungal drugs was found to be on a similar level with that of T. mentagrophytes and T. rubrum, major causative agents of dermatomycosis. The results also demonstrated the strong antifungal activity of lanoconazole and luliconazole against T. tonsurans.
[Efficacy of micafungin sodium on fungal infection in critical care].
Tateishi Y, Hirasawa H, Oda S … +3 more , Nakanishi K, Kitamura S, Aikawa N
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086162 · Publisher ↗
The clinical effects and tolerability of micafungin sodium in daily practice for the treatment of fungal infection in critically ill patients were evaluated in an open-labeled, non-comparative, observational study. All p...
The clinical effects and tolerability of micafungin sodium in daily practice for the treatment of fungal infection in critically ill patients were evaluated in an open-labeled, non-comparative, observational study. All patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) of 3 hospitals in Chiba prefecture between June 2003 and March 2005, who were treated with micafungin because of known or suspected fungal infection, were included in the study. A total of 34 patients received micafungin and 29 cases of them were subjected to analysis. Fungal infections were classified as "proven" in 3 patients (10.3%) and "possible" in 26 (89.7%). Candida was detected in 16 patients, most of them were Candida albicans and 4 cases were non-albicans Candida. Clinical effects of micafungin were "cured" and "improved" in 20 patients (77%), "failure" in 6 (23%), and "undetermined" in 3 cases. Adverse events were reported in 10 patients, but there was no significant event. In conclusion, micafungin was effective in 77% of proven or suspected fungal infections in critically ill patients admitted to the ICU. The drug was well tolerated and discontinuation of its treatment due to adverse events was not experienced during the study period.
[Invasive fungal infection in solid organ transplantation: toward evidence-based prophylaxis and preemptive treatment].
Kiuchi T
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086161 · Publisher ↗
Although the opportunity to discuss infectious complications in solid organ transplantation is increasing in Japan as elsewhere, the length of clinical experience in extra-renal transplantation is still short and even ex...
Although the opportunity to discuss infectious complications in solid organ transplantation is increasing in Japan as elsewhere, the length of clinical experience in extra-renal transplantation is still short and even experience in living donor organ transplant is very limited except for those involving the kidney or liver transplantation. Risk of invasive fungal infection in organ transplant recipients is highly dependent on the immunocompromised status accompanying end-stage organ failure before transplant operation and on the resultant history of infectious complications. These factors as well as surgical and postoperative should be incorporated in a systematic and dynamic manner to evaluate risk of invasive fungal infection. In addition to prophylactic management based on such risk evaluation, it is desirable that preemptive treatment be started on quantification of clinical symptoms, imaging diagnosis, screening culture, and serological indices. Emergence of newer and more potent antifungal agents with lower toxicity potentially changes the concept of antifungal treatment. On the other hand, early and impression-oriented preemptive treatment has tended to increase. It is still questionable whether the knowledge obtained from Western experience can be directly applied to solid organ transplant medicine in Japan. Extensive and detailed clinical experience is mandatory to pursue diagnosis, epidemiology, and risk factors in Japan and establish our criteria for prophylactic and preemptive use of antifungal agents.
[Use of PCR based diagnosis for common invasive fungal infections in the intensive care unit].
Arishima T, Takezawa J
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086160 · Publisher ↗
Deep-seated Candida infections and invasive aspergilloma are becoming a serious problem for individuals who need intensive care. The laboratory diagnosis of such infections is sometimes delayed due to relatively slow gro...
Deep-seated Candida infections and invasive aspergilloma are becoming a serious problem for individuals who need intensive care. The laboratory diagnosis of such infections is sometimes delayed due to relatively slow growth of these yeasts from clinical specimens. Several studies seem to indicate that early detection of deep-seated and invasive fungal infections is possible using genomic amplification methods. In the present study, we used a novel PCR assay that can assay five clinically common species (C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, C. tropicalis, C. glablata, and A. fumigatus) simultaneously. We evaluated the utility of this PCR based diagnosis with seven patients with candidiases. This assay is more sensitive than the culture result in 26 clinical samples (chi(2)=5.16, p < 0.05). In the clinical course of each patient, the number of detected fungal species gradually increased. More than two species were detected from single or several clinical specimens, and these patients would die within 14 days compared with the 61 day period individuals with zero or one species would live (p < 0.005). Before super infections of fungus, an antifungal drug could be applied to a suspected patient in the ICU. To improve sensitivity of this diagnosis from blood samples, we evaluated them after one day incubation at 34 degree. We found a PCR product in 10 of 20 blood samples taken from five children after bone marrow transplantation. One of four negative samples became positive after more than 48 hours of incubation.
Amino acid residues affecting drug pump function in Candida albicans--C. albicans drug pump function.
Holmes AR, Tsao S, Lamping E … +5 more , Niimi K, Monk BC, Tanabe K, Niimi M, Cannon RD
Nihon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi · 2006 · PMID 17086159 · Publisher ↗
Membrane-located drug transporters are important components in the multidrug resistance of microbial cells and human tissues. In fungi, clinically important resistance to antifungal drugs most often results from the over...
Membrane-located drug transporters are important components in the multidrug resistance of microbial cells and human tissues. In fungi, clinically important resistance to antifungal drugs most often results from the over-expression of efflux pump proteins in the plasma membrane of the resistant cell. This review describes studies of the ATP binding cassette (ABC) family of membrane efflux pumps in the opportunistic human pathogen Candida albicans and, in particular, examines how changes in the polypeptide sequence can affect pump function. The identification of amino acid residues affecting pump function can provide new insights into efflux pump mechanisms and the relationship between structure and function. Such information will be important for the design of pump inhibitors which could supplement existing antifungal drugs.
About
- Frequency
- Sun
- Papers found
- 200
- RSS feed
- Subscribe