Cryptococcosis

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Cryptococcosis What is cryptococcosis and eye problems, change in behavior, How can I protect my animal what causes it? depression, disorientation, seizures, from cryptococcosis? Cryptococcosis (KRIP-toe-cock- and difficulties with moving around. It is difficult to prevent exposure to co-sis) is caused by the fungus, Cattle and goats can get mastitis cryptococcosis since it is commonly Cryptococcus neoformans (KRIP- (udder infection). found in the environment. Avoidance toe-cock-kus knee-O-for-mans). It is Can I get cryptococcosis? and environmental control of bird found worldwide and primarily affects droppings (especially pigeons) are Yes, but typically only individuals cats and people with weak immune important. with weakened immune systems systems. Cryptococcosis can result in get the disease. Exposure is primarily a variety of clinical signs depending How can I protect myself through inhalation (aerosol) of on the organ system involved. from cryptococcosis? contaminated soil and not directly There have been no reports of What animals get from animals. It usually causes lung or direct animal-to-human transmission. cryptococcosis? brain infection. Signs and symptoms People with weakened immune Disease is most often found in cats seen include fever, coughing of blood, systems should limit their exposure to but has been reported in cattle, dogs, and chest pain. Visual problems, contaminated environments. ferrets, guinea pigs, horses, sheep, confusion or behavioral changes may occur if the brain becomes infected. Precautions, such as wearing dust goats, pigs, llamas, and other animals. masks, should be taken when cleaning Cryptococcus can be found in the Who should I contact, if I out old building/barns, since these feces of birds, especially pigeons, but suspect cryptococcosis? areas may be contaminated with bird also canaries, budgerigars, parrots, In Animals – droppings. Always wash your hands cockatoos, parakeets, chickens, Contact your veterinarian. thoroughly after cleaning these areas. sparrows, starlings, and turtledoves. In Humans – For More Information Although birds can carry the fungus, Contact your physician. they usually do not become sick. CFSPH Technical Fact Sheets. Cryptococcosis at http://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/ How can my animal get DiseaseInfo/ cryptococcosis? Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Animals come in contact with Cryptococcosis at http://www.cdc.gov/ the fungus in the environment. fungal/cryptococcosis-neoformans/ Cryptococcus is widespread in the soil (where it grows naturally) or is deposited through bird droppings (particularly pigeons). Transmission occurs mainly by inhalation (aerosol). How does cryptococcosis affect my animal? The signs of illness will vary Cryptococcosis with the part of the body affected. is caused by a fungus that Cryptococcosis can cause respiratory may be found in dried (lung) disease, skin lesions or infection pigeon droppings. of the nervous system (brain) or eyes. Photos from http://www.bcgsc.ca/about/news/ Signs in animals may include crypto_public and http://www.astro.umd.edu/~dcr/ Archives/Photos/Birds/filenames/ sneezing, snorting, nasal discharge, © 2013.

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Cryptococcus Neoformans</Em>
Clemson University TigerPrints All Dissertations Dissertations December 2019 Role of Cryptococcus neoformans Pyruvate Decarboxylase and Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Enzymes in Acetate Production and Virulence Mufida Ahmed Nagi Ammar Clemson University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations Recommended Citation Ammar, Mufida Ahmed Nagi, "Role of Cryptococcus neoformans Pyruvate Decarboxylase and Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Enzymes in Acetate Production and Virulence" (2019). All Dissertations. 2488. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/2488 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Role of Cryptococcus neoformans Pyruvate Decarboxylase and Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Enzymes in Acetate Production and Virulence A Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of Clemson University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Biochemistry and Molecular Biology by Mufida Ahmed Nagi Ammar December 2019 Accepted by: Dr. Kerry Smith, Committee Chair Dr. Julia Frugoli Dr. Cheryl Ingram-Smith Dr. Lukasz Kozubowski ABSTRACT The basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans is is an invasive opportunistic pathogen of the central nervous system and the most frequent cause of fungal meningitis. C. neoformans enters the host by inhalation and protects itself from immune assault in the lungs by producing hydrolytic enzymes, immunosuppressants, and other virulence factors. C. neoformans also adapts to the environment inside the host, including producing metabolites that may confer survival advantages. One of these, acetate, can be kept in reserve as a carbon source or can be used to weaken the immune response by lowering local pH or as a key part of immunomodulatory molecules.
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Idiopathic CD4 Lymphocytopenia: Spectrum of Opportunistic Infections, Malignancies, and Autoimmune Diseases
Published online: 2021-08-09 REVIEW ARTICLE Idiopathic CD4 Lymphocytopenia: Spectrum of opportunistic infections, malignancies, and autoimmune diseases Dina S. Ahmad, Mohammad Esmadi, William C. Steinmann Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, MO, USA Access this article online ABSTRACT Website: www.avicennajmed.com DOI: 10.4103/2231-0770.114121 Idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia (ICL) was first defined in 1992 by the US Centers for Disease Quick Response Code: Control and Prevention (CDC) as the repeated presence of a CD4+ T lymphocyte count of fewer than 300 cells per cubic millimeter or of less than 20% of total T cells with no evidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and no condition that might cause depressed CD4 counts. Most of our knowledge about ICL comes from scattered case reports. The aim of this study was to collect comprehensive data from the previously published cases to understand the characteristics of this rare condition. We searched the PubMed database and Science Direct for case reports since 1989 for Idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia cases. We found 258 cases diagnosed with ICL in 143 published papers. We collected data about age, sex, pathogens, site of infections, CD4 count, CD8 count, CD4:CD8 ratio, presence of HIV risk factors, malignancies, autoimmune diseases and whether the patients survived or died. The mean age at diagnosis of first opportunistic infection (or ICL if no opportunistic infection reported) was 40.7 ± 19.2 years (standard deviation), with a range of 1 to 85. One-sixty (62%) patients were males, 91 (35.2%) were females, and 7 (2.7%) patients were not identified whether males or females.
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Copyright Ó 2010 by the Genetics Society of America DOI: 10.1534/genetics.109.113027 A Tetrad Analysis of the Basidiomycete Fungus Cryptococcus neoformans Alexander Idnurm Division of Cell Biology and Biophysics, School of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, Missouri 64110 Manuscript received December 10, 2009 Accepted for publication February 9, 2010 ABSTRACT Cryptococcus neoformans is a basidiomycete fungus that is found worldwide and causes disease in humans and animal species. The fungus grows asexually as a budding yeast. Under laboratory conditions it is capable of sexual reproduction between two mating types. After cell fusion a dikaryotic ﬁlament develops, at the tip of which a basidium gives rise to four chains of basidiospores. Because the chains each comprise 10–30 spores, rather than single spores, the analysis of individual meiotic events has not been attempted in C. neoformans in the style of tetrad analyses performed in other fungal species. Here, the basidiospores from .100 basidia were micromanipulated and the resultant .2500 progeny analyzed for three genetic markers to understand the sexual process in this fungus, leading to four observations: (i) Marker seg- regation provides genetic evidence for a single meiotic event within the basidium followed by multiple rounds of mitosis. (ii) Using each basidium as an unordered tetrad, the ADE2 and URA5 genes are linked to their centromeres, consistent with adjacent genomic regions rich in repetitive elements predicted to comprise Cryptococcus centromeres. (iii) Lack of germination of basidiospores is attributed to aneuploidy, rather than dormancy. (iv) Analysis of basidiospores derived from single chains demonstrates that each chain can contain different genotypes.
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Cleaning Bird and Animal Urine, Feces and Nesting Areas
Procedures for Cleaning Bird and Animal Urine, Feces and Nesting Areas 1.0 INTRODUCTION Birds and animal droppings, urine, nesting (including feathers that may be left behind) and roosting sites can host many diseases. Precautions should be taken to reduce the risk of disease transmission. Scope This procedure applies to all buildings, structures, machinery and equipment owned, occupied or operated by the University of Toronto at all campuses and other locations. It applies to all employees and students of the University, to occupants of University buildings and to external organizations who carry out cleaning of bird or animal urine, feces and nesting and roosting sites. 2.0 RESPONSIBILITIES Supervisors/management/principal investigators/property managers/project manager: . Develop, document, and implement appropriate measures and precautions by using these procedures or equivalent in conjunction with the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS). Ensure that a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) is completed where necessary. Ensure controls identified in the JSA and in this procedure are followed. Provide equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE), instruction and other resources as identified in the JSA and this procedure. Ensure that the JSA and this procedure are readily available to applicable workers. Ensure that contractors hired to perform this type of cleaning are provided with a copy of this procedure and will comply with this procedure. Workers: . Identify situations where this this procedure or a JSA is needed. Review this procedure and JSA prior to beginning the job. Follow safety procedures and use equipment and/or PPE as defined in this procedure and JSA. Participate in the development of the JSA if requested.
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Product Sheet Info
Product Information Sheet for NR-50430 Cryptococcus gattii, Strain C10 Propagation: 1. Keep vial frozen until ready for use; thaw rapidly. Catalog No. NR-50430 2. Inoculate an agar plate with approximately 50 µL of thawed culture and/or transfer the entire thawed aliquot into a single tube of broth For research use only. Not for human use. 3. Incubate the plate and/or tube at 25°C for 2 to 4 days. Contributor: Citation: Brian Wong, M.D., Professor, and Igor Bruzual, Ph.D., Acknowledgment for publications should read “The following Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Oregon reagent was obtained through BEI Resources, NIAID, NIH: Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA Cryptococcus gattii, Strain C10, NR-50430.” Manufacturer: Biosafety Level: 2 BEI Resources Appropriate safety procedures should always be used with this material. Laboratory safety is discussed in the following Product Description: publication: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Classification: Tremellaceae, Cryptococcus Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Species: Cryptococcus gattii Prevention, and National Institutes of Health. Biosafety in Strain: C10 Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories. 5th ed. Original Source: Cryptococcus gattii (C. gattii), strain C10 Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2009; see was isolated from an unknown human source in the Pacific www.cdc.gov/biosafety/publications/bmbl5/index.htm. Northwest region of North America.1 Comments: C. gattii, strain C10 was deposited as lineage Disclaimers: VGIIa and resistant to azoles.1 You are authorized to use this product for research use only. The Cryptococcus species complex is comprised of four It is not intended for human use.
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Coprolites of Deinosuchus and Other Crocodylians from the Upper Cretaceous of Western Georgia, Usa
Milàn, J., Lucas, S.G., Lockley, M.G. and Spielmann, J.A., eds., 2010, Crocodyle tracks and traces. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Bulletin 51. 209 COPROLITES OF DEINOSUCHUS AND OTHER CROCODYLIANS FROM THE UPPER CRETACEOUS OF WESTERN GEORGIA, USA SAMANTHA D. HARRELL AND DAVID R. SCHWIMMER Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Columbus State University, Columbus, GA 31907 USA, [email protected] Abstract—Associated with abundant bones, teeth and osteoderms of the giant eusuchian Deinosuchus rugosus are larger concretionary masses of consistent form and composition. It is proposed that these are crocodylian coprolites, and further, based on their size and abundance, that these are coprolites of Deinosuchus. The associated coprolite assemblage also contains additional types that may come from smaller crocodylians, most likely species of the riverine/estuarine genus Borealosuchus, which is represented by bones, osteoderms and teeth in fossil collections from the same site. INTRODUCTION The Upper Cretaceous Blufftown Formation in western Georgia contains a diverse perimarine and marine vertebrate fauna, including many sharks and bony fish (Case and Schwimmer, 1988), mosasaurs, plesio- saurs, turtles (Schwimmer, 1986), dinosaurs (Schwimmer et al., 1993), and of particular interest here, abundant remains of the giant eusuchian crocodylian Deinosuchus rugosus (Schwimmer and Williams, 1996; Schwimmer, 2002). Together with bite traces attributable to Deinosuchus (see Schwimmer, this volume), there are more than 60 coprolites recov- ered from the same formation, including ~30 specimens that appear to be of crocodylian origin. It is proposed here that the larger coprolites are from Deinosuchus, principally because that is the most common large tetrapod in the vertebrate bone assemblage from the same locality, and it is assumed that feces scale to the producer (Chin, 2002).
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Study Guide Medical Terminology by Thea Liza Batan About the Author
Study Guide Medical Terminology By Thea Liza Batan About the Author Thea Liza Batan earned a Master of Science in Nursing Administration in 2007 from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has worked as a staff nurse, nurse instructor, and level department head. She currently works as a simulation coordinator and a free- lance writer specializing in nursing and healthcare. All terms mentioned in this text that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Use of a term in this text shouldn’t be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark. Copyright © 2017 by Penn Foster, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be mailed to Copyright Permissions, Penn Foster, 925 Oak Street, Scranton, Pennsylvania 18515. Printed in the United States of America CONTENTS INSTRUCTIONS 1 READING ASSIGNMENTS 3 LESSON 1: THE FUNDAMENTALS OF MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY 5 LESSON 2: DIAGNOSIS, INTERVENTION, AND HUMAN BODY TERMS 28 LESSON 3: MUSCULOSKELETAL, CIRCULATORY, AND RESPIRATORY SYSTEM TERMS 44 LESSON 4: DIGESTIVE, URINARY, AND REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM TERMS 69 LESSON 5: INTEGUMENTARY, NERVOUS, AND ENDOCRINE S YSTEM TERMS 96 SELF-CHECK ANSWERS 134 © PENN FOSTER, INC. 2017 MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY PAGE III Contents INSTRUCTIONS INTRODUCTION Welcome to your course on medical terminology. You’re taking this course because you’re most likely interested in pursuing a health and science career, which entails proficiencyincommunicatingwithhealthcareprofessionalssuchasphysicians,nurses, or dentists.
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Cryptococcus Gattii Outbreak
The recent Cryptococcus gattii outbreak A deadly pathway… From Trees to Lungs to Brain ryptococcus gattii disease. The route of C has been in the infection is from breathing the news lately, due to a recent airborne organism, which outbreak in the Pacific becomes lodged in the Northwest. This new, more pulmonary tissues. virulent strain is expected to by Jay Hardy, CLS, SM (NRCM) spread further throughout the Symptoms Northwest and Northern California in the coming The pulmonary disease, Jay Hardy is the founder and months. known as cpryptococcosis, president of Hardy Diagnostics. develops slowly. After He began his career in exposure it can take two to microbiology as a Medical Technologist in Santa Barbara, twelve months for symptoms California. to appear, with the usual onset In 1980, he began at six or seven months. manufacturing culture media for the local hospitals. Today, The symptoms include: Hardy Diagnostics is the third largest media manufacturer in the U.S. • Cough that lasts weeks or months To ensure rapid and reliable turn around time, Hardy • Sharp chest pain Figure 1: An India ink stain Diagnostics maintains six • Unexplained shortness of showing the capsule surrounding distribution centers, and breath produces over 3,000 products the C. gattii cells in the yeast form used in clinical and industrial at 1,000X. Photo from Haley/CDC. • Severe headache microbiology laboratories • Confusion throughout the world. The organism is a fungus that • Fever is usually found in the soil • Night sweats www.HardyDiagnostics.com and on trees. It is not spread • Unintended weight loss from human to human or animal to human.
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Mucormycosis of the Central Nervous System
Journal of Fungi Review Mucormycosis of the Central Nervous System 1 1,2, , 3, , Amanda Chikley , Ronen Ben-Ami * y and Dimitrios P Kontoyiannis * y 1 Infectious Diseases Unit, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv 64239, Israel 2 Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 64239, Israel 3 Department of Infectious Diseases, The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA * Correspondence: [email protected] (R.B.-A.); [email protected] (D.P.K.) These authors contribute equally to this paper. y Received: 6 June 2019; Accepted: 7 July 2019; Published: 8 July 2019 Abstract: Mucormycosis involves the central nervous system by direct extension from infected paranasal sinuses or hematogenous dissemination from the lungs. Incidence rates of this rare disease seem to be rising, with a shift from the rhino-orbital-cerebral syndrome typical of patients with diabetes mellitus and ketoacidosis, to disseminated disease in patients with hematological malignancies. We present our current understanding of the pathobiology, clinical features, and diagnostic and treatment strategies of cerebral mucormycosis. Despite advances in imaging and the availability of novel drugs, cerebral mucormycosis continues to be associated with high rates of death and disability. Emerging molecular diagnostics, advances in experimental systems and the establishment of large patient registries are key components of ongoing eﬀorts to provide a timely diagnosis and eﬀective treatment to patients with cerebral mucormycosis. Keywords: central nervous system; mucormycosis; Mucorales; zygomycosis 1. Introduction Mucormycosis is the second most frequent invasive mold disease after aspergillosis [1–3], with rising incidence reported in some countries [4–7].
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Idiopathic CD4 Lymphocytopenia Presenting As Refractory Cryptococcal Meningitis
Case Report Idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia presenting as refractory cryptococcal meningitis A. Sharma, V. Lal, M. Modi, D. Khurana, S. Bal, S. Prabhakar Department of Neurology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh-160 012, India Abstract Idiopathic CD4 T-lymphocytopenia (ICL) is a syndrome characterized by depletion of CD4 T-cells without evidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. There are a few reported cases of ICL associated with different diseases and clinical conditions, most commonly the opportunistic infections like Tuberculosis, fungal and parasitic diseases which are also seen in HIV-positive patients. We report a case without risk factors or laboratory evidence of HIV infection who presented with refractory cryptococcal meningitis and was found to have ICL. Key Words Cryptococcus, CD4, idiopathic For correspondence: Dr. Vivek Lal, Department of Neurology, PGIMER, Sector-12, Chandigarh-160 012, India. E-mail: [email protected] Ann Indian Acad Neurol 2010;13:136-8 [DOI: 10.4103/0972-2327.64646] Introduction and decreased pain and temperature sensation in the right half of the body, with sparing of the face. The neurological Idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia (ICL) was deﬁ ned by the examination was otherwise normal. Plain magnetic resonance United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention imaging (MRI) brain revealed a T2 hyperintensity in the (CDC) as a clinical condition in patients with depressed left thalamus, extending to involve the left corona radiata numbers of circulating CD4 T lymphocytes (<300 cells/µl or [Figure 1]. There was no meningeal enhancement on contrast- <20% of total T cells) at a minimum of two separate time points enhanced MRI.
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Fungal Infections – an Overview
REVIEW Fungal infections – An overview Natalie Schellack, BCur, BPharm, PhD(Pharmacy); Jade du Toit, BPharm; Tumelo Mokoena, BPharm; Elmien Bronkhorst, BPharm, MSc(Med) School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University Correspondence to: Prof Natalie Schellack, [email protected] Abstract Fungi normally originate from the environment that surrounds us, and appear to be harmless until inhaled or ingestion of spores occurs. A pathogenic fungus may lead to infection. People who are at risk of acquiring fungal infection are those living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), cancer, receiving immunosuppressant therapy, neonates and those of advanced age. The management of superficial fungal infections is mainly topical, with agents including terbinafine, miconazole and ketoconazole. Oral treatment includes griseofulvin and fluconazole. Invasive fungal infections are difficult to treat, and are managed with agents including the azoles, echinocandins and amphotericin B. This paper provides a general overview of the management of fungus infections. © Medpharm S Afr Pharm J 2019;86(1):33-40 Introduction more advanced biochemical or molecular testing.4 Fungi normally originate from the environment that surrounds Superficial fungal infections us, and appear to be harmless until inhaled or ingestion of spores Either yeasts or fungi can cause dermatomycosis, or superficial occurs. Infection with fungi is also more likely when the body’s fungal infections.7 Fungi that infect the hair, skin, nails and mucosa immune system becomes weakened. A pathogenic fungus may lead to infection. The number of fungus species ranges in the can cause a superficial fungal infection. Dermatophytes are found millions and only a few species seem to be harmful to humans; the naturally in soil, human skin and keratin-containing structures, 3 ones found mostly on the mucous membrane and the skin have which provide them with a source of nutrition.
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Safety Precautions for Working with Cryptococcus Neoformans
Safety Precautions for Working with Cryptococcus neoformans The basidiomycete fungus Cryptococcus neoformans is an invasive opportunistic pathogen of the central nervous system and the most frequent cause of fungal meningitis worldwide. Although Cryptococcus is a problem in the United States, it is significantly more prevalent and especially devastating in the developing world, such as sub-Saharan Africa, resulting in in more than 625,000 deaths per year worldwide. C. neoformans survives in the environment within soil, trees, and bird guano, where it can interact with wild animals or microbial predators, maintaining its virulence. Human infection is thought to be acquired by inhalation of desiccated yeast cells or spores from an environmental source. C. neoformans can colonize the host respiratory tract without producing any disease. Infection is typically asymptomatic, and it can be either cleared or enter a dormant, latent form. When host immunity is compromised, the dormant form can be reactivated and disseminate hematogenously to cause systemic infection. C. neoformans can infect or spread to any organ to cause localized infections involving the skin, eyes, myocardium, bones, joints, lungs, prostate gland, or urinary tract, in addition to its propensity to infect the central nervous systems. The following diseases and medications are risk factors for C. neoformans infection and are associated with at least some degree of immunosuppression: Ø HIV/AIDs (CD4 < 100cells/mm) Ø Corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive medications for cancer, chemotherapy, or organ transplants Ø Solid organ transplantations Ø Diabetes mellitus Ø Heart, lung, or liver disease Ø Pregnancy Even otherwise healthy, fully immunocompetent individuals can develop cryptococcosis, as may well be the case in a lab accident.
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