BACKGROUND Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous disease of unknown etiology and coccidioidomycosis is a granulomatous fungal infection endemic to the southwestern United States. Clinical observations on patients with sarcoidosis and coccidioidomycosis simultaneously led to the hypothesis that sarcoidosis can be caused by the fungus Coccidioides. METHODS Two patients with sarcoidosis and coccidioido...

Coccidioidomycosis (CM) is a mycotic disease that affects mammals, including humans. Official data relative to CM in Mexico has not been collected since 1995, thus its prevalence remains unknown. The objectives of this study were to identify the predominant Coccidioides species in Mexico, infer their current geographical distribution and explore the correlation between species and clinical pres...

During the past 20 years, a general picture of the genetic diversity and population structure of Coccidioides, the causal agent of coccidioidomycosis (Valley fever), has emerged. The genus consists of 2 genetically diverse species, C. immitis and C. posadasii, each of which contains 1 or more distinct populations with limited gene flow. Genotypic data indicate that C. immitis is divided into 2 ...

Clinical isolates of Coccidioides spp. and Blastomyces dermatitidis can be identified by chemiluminescent DNA probes and PCR assays targeting multicopy genes. In fixed tissue samples, cells of the two fungi are specified by in situ hybridization and PCR assays targeting 18S rDNA but sequencing of the products is mandatory. Nested PCR assays targeting genes encoding species- or genus-specific pr...

Until recently, culture, microscopy, and serology have been the available methods for the diagnosis of coccidioidomycosis. While Coccidioides is frequently isolated by culture, special precautions must be taken because of the risk of laboratory infection and because Coccidioides is on the Select Agent list. Serology is useful but the sensitivity remains lower than desired. A commercially availa...

F or endemic dimorphic fungi, switching between different morphologies is crucial for pathogenesis. These ascomycetes, which include Blastomyces dermatitidis, Histoplasma capsulatum, Coccidioides immitis, Coccidioides posadasii, Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, Sporothrix schenckii, and Penicillium marneffei, grow as mycelia that produce conidia or, in the case of Coccidioides spp., arthroconidia...

A 30-year-old Caucasian man developed fever, myalgia, and dry cough that lasted for 3 weeks. He works as a house painter in Phoenix, Ariz. Three months later, he developed right-sided headache, meningismus, and photophobia. A lumbar puncture (LP) revealed normal opening pressure, lymphocytic pleocytosis (340 white blood cells, 96% lymphocytes), elevated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) total protein (...

Dialyzable Lawrence-type transfer factor was prepared from the spleen cells of CF1 mice inoculated with Coccidioides immitis- and Candida albicans-killed vaccines and with live Mycobacterium tuberculosis vaccine (BCG). These preparations were shown to transfer antigen-specific cell-mediated immunity to naive mice, as measured by the delayed skin test and footpad-swelling methods. Reactivity cou...

Coccidioidomycosis is a fungal disease acquired through the inhalation of spores of Coccidioides spp., which afflicts primarily humans and other mammals. It is endemic to areas in the southwestern United States, including the San Joaquin Valley portion of Kern County, California, our region of interest (ROI). Recently, incidence of coccidioidomycosis, also known as valley fever, has increased s...