POSTED MAY 08, 2019 by Robert H. Shmerling, Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing I have to admit it: recent news reports about a newly described “superbug” are worrisome and at least a little bit terrifying. This time, it’s not a flesh-eating bacterium or drug-resistant tuberculosis — in fact, it’s not a bacterial infection at all. […]
Editorial Note: This article was written by Tom Chiller, MD, chief of the Mycotic Diseases Brand of the CDC, in August 2017. He raised an alarm about Candida auris before it was even fully recognized as a pending epidemic. He commented in a CDC Expert Commentary Series on Medscape, “I would like to tell you […]
Zygomycosis now called Mucormycosis is a serious but rare fungal infection caused by a group of molds called Mucormycetes. These molds live throughout the environment.
Causes Fungal meningitis is rare and usually caused by fungus spreading through blood to the spinal cord. Although anyone can get fungal meningitis, people with weakened immune systems, like those with an HIV infection or cancer, are at increased risk. The most common cause of fungal meningitis is Cryptococcus. This disease is one of the most […]
Summary The post by Dr. B.J. Hardick, Aflatoxins: Poisons Hiding in Plain Sight caught my eye. I practically raised my two children on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for their school lunches. WOW! Where was this information back then? And now that I have grand kids, I am even more concerned. I’m guessing that most […]
Aspergillosis is a disease caused by Aspergillus, a common mold (a type of fungus) that lives indoors and outdoors. There are different types of aspergillosis. Some types are mild, but some of them are very serious.1 Types of Aspergillosis Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA): Aspergillus causes inflammation in the lungs and allergy symptoms such as coughing and wheezing, […]
Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by microfungi that are capable of causing disease and death in humans and other animals. Growth of fungi on animal hosts produces the diseases collectively called mycoses, while dietary, respiratory, dermal, and other exposures to toxic fungal metabolites produce the diseases collectively called mycotoxicoses. Mycoses range from merely annoying (e.g., […]
Once you are tested and diagnosed with mycotoxicosis, then what? Try to assess the extent your the fungal infection and how impaired you are (if any). Learning as much as you can is exceptionally important, as most physicians are inexperienced in dealing with this mold illnesses. Finding legitimate information will help you in understanding your symptoms, figuring out […]
Many tall fescue pastures in Alabama, Tennessee and most of the United States are infected with a systemic fungus, Acremonium coenophialum. This fungus is harmless to the host plant, but it is responsible for a variety of symptoms known as fescue toxicosis, summer syndrome, and summer slump when infected plants are consumed by cattle. The […]
Many people still don’t fully understand the health hazards of mold exposure. The term ‘toxic mold’ is somewhat misleading. It suggests that certain molds are toxic. While molds and mold spores do make people sick, the dangerous culprits are the secondary metabolites (chemicals) made by molds that are toxins. The correct term is mycotoxins. Airborne […]
Aspergillosis (Brooder Pneumonia) has been observed in almost all birds and animals, including man. The disease is observed in one of two forms; acute outbreaks with high morbidity and high mortality in young birds, and a chronic condition affecting adult birds. It is more of a problem in turkeys than in chickens. The condition is […]
Ergot toxicity, caused by the fungus Claviceps purpurea, differs from other mycotoxicoses, since it results from the consumption of considerable amounts of fungal tissue. In other mycotoxicoses, the toxins are secreted into plant tissues in which the fungus is growing, and very little fungal material is consumed. The ergot fungus infects the flowers of cereals […]
Blind staggers (technically known as equine leucoencephalomalacia) occasionally occurs in horses, mules, or donkeys foraging corn left standing in the field after harvest or fed grain or screenings heavily infected with F. moniliforme. The toxins fumonisin B1 and B2 are produced only by certain strains of F. moniliforme. This toxicant is also carcinogenic in laboratory […]
Tibial dyschondroplasia (TDP) is a common and economically important bone deformation in growing broiler chickens and turkeys. The lesion appears in a cone of cartilage extending distally from the proximal tibiotarsalphysis. The most likely cause of this deformation is a toxin called fusarochromanone produced by Fusarium equiseti. When added to the diet of broiler chicks […]
Zearalenone and zearalenol are produced almost exclusively by Fusarium species that contribute to the ear and stalk rot that occurs in the ears of corn and on the heads of cereal grains (scab) standing in the field or in stored ear corn in the Corn Belt. However, in 1986, these mycotoxins were detected in delayed […]
A progressive mycosis of skin, mucous membranes, lymph nodes, and internal organs caused by Paracoccidioides brasiliensis. Infections occur only in discrete foci in South and Central America, most often in men aged 20 to 50, especially coffee growers of Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil. Although a relatively unusual opportunistic infection, paracoccidioidomycosis sometimes occurs in immunocompromised patients, […]
Ill patients approached us from an evacuated apartment building with several million IAQ counts of toxigenic fungi. These were the highest counts we had ever seen. In this study, most of whose host defense mechanisms were compromised from toxigenic fungal exposure ranged from minor to fatal and often are caused by organisms that normally reside on […]
An infection caused by the saprophytic fungus Sporothrix schenckii, usually initiated at cutaneous sites of trauma that spreads via lymphatics to form nodules that break down into abscesses and ulcers if untreated. S. schenckii is found on rose or barberry bushes and sphagnum moss or other mulches. Horticulturists, gardeners, farm laborers, and timber workers are most […]
Opportunistic infections caused by Aspergillus sp and inhaled as mold conidia, leading to hyphal growth and invasion of blood vessels, hemorrhagic necrosis, infarction, and potential dissemination to other sites in patients. Aspergillus sp are among the most common environmental molds, found frequently in decaying vegetation (compost heaps), on insulating materials (in walls or ceilings around […]
Candidiasis is an infection caused by strains of candida fungus and more commonly candida albicans. This fungus is often found in the vagina area and occasionally in other areas of mucous membranes such as the mouth or on damp skin. This infection is commonly called thrush or moniliasis This infection is rare. As the growth […]
The term zygomycosis describes in the broadest sense any infection due to a member of the Zygomycetes. These are primitive, fast growing, terrestrial, largely saprophytic fungi with a cosmopolitan distribution. To date, some 665 species have been described although infections in humans and animals are generally very rare. Medically important orders and genera include: Mucorales […]
Facts and Fears Clarified Mycotoxicoses are diseases caused by mycotoxins, i.e. secondary metabolites of molds. Although they occur more frequently in areas with a hot and humid climate, favourable for the growth of molds, they can also be found in temperate zones. Exposure to mycotoxins is mostly by ingestion, but also occurs by the dermal […]
Molds can produce other secondary metabolites (See list in table below) such as antibiotics and mycotoxins. Antibiotics are isolated from mold (and some bacterial) cultures and some of their bacteriotoxic or bacteriostatic properties are exploited medicinally to combat infections. Mycotoxins are also products of secondary metabolism of molds. They are not essential to maintaining the […]
Definition of FUNGALBIONICS The term FUNGALBIONICS was created in an attempt to describe one of the most dynamic microbial chemical factories ever encountered in the history of scientific exploration. Fungi are masters at producing a wide array of biologically active substances which serve the producing fungus extremely well. These biological metabolites are anti-predatory and pro-territorial-protective and […]
Mucormycosis (Zygomycosis; Phycomycosis) is an infection with tissue invasion by broad, non-septate, irregularly shaped hyphae of diverse fungal species, including Rhizopus, Rhizomucor, Absidia, and Basidiobolus. Infection is most common in immuno-suppressed persons, in patients with poorly controlled diabetes, and in patients receiving the iron-chelating drug desferrioxamine. Symptoms and Signs Rhinocerebral mucormycosis is the most common […]
Blastomycosis is a chronic infection characterized by a granulomatous and suppurative lesion. It is caused by a single fungal species, blastomyces dermatitidis, which is a thick walled spherical yeast that usually produces single buds. The bud and parent yeast have a characteristically wide base of attachment. The infection is initiated by inhalation of the dimorphic […]
Trichothecenes are mycotoxins (secondary metabolites or chemicals) primarily produced by various species of Fusarium (T-2, HT-2 and DAS), Trichoderma and Stachybotrys (black mold). They are toxic to humans, other mammals, birds, fish, a variety of invertebrates, plants and bacteria. The effects of poisoning will depend on the particular toxin, the concentration of exposure, length of […]
MYCOTOXINS (T2) T-2 mycotoxins and Yellow Rain – the same destructive neurological and immunological agents that are found in indoor molds. Summary Currently, the United States Army is conducting 90% of their biological warfare research in T-2 mycotoxins, according to Dr. William Deagle, in a recent telephone interview. These are the same T-2 mycotoxins that are […]
The fungus Rhizictonia leguminicola growing in red clover produces a compound that, when consumed by cattle, results in profuse salivation (hence the name “slobber syndrome”), which is relatively common throughout the Midwest. The compound itself is not to toxic before being consumed but is transformed by the animal into a toxin compound.
Aspergillus fumigatus is a mold that is common in most soils. This species is usually involved in decay of plant materials. The mold commonly causes stored grains to heat and decay and, under certain conditions, invades grain in the field. The problem is serious world-wide where beans, corn, rice, peanuts, wheat, milk, eggs and meat […]
Fusarium graminearum (sexual state Gibberella zeae) growing in the ears of corn and on the heads of cereal grains before harvest may produce other toxins besides zearalenone. These include deoxynivalenol (DON), which makes the grain unpalatable to swine. Field-infected corn with visibly more than 5 percent damaged kernels is refused by pigs. Feed refusal may […]
Ochratoxin A is a metabolite produced primarily by members of the Aspergillus ochraceus group and a number of species of Penicillium, especially P. viridicatum. It has been found in some samples of food and feed grains, including grains, nuts, spices, coffee beans, olives and grapes. Frequently, citrinin or PA is produced by these same fungi […]
 
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