Neutrophils predominate during the acute phase of the Paracoccidioides brasiliensis infection. Herein, we determined the role of the neutrophil during the early stages of experimental pulmonary paracoccidioidomycosis using a monoclonal antibody (mAb) specific for neutrophils. Male BALB/c mice were inoculated intranasally with 1.5 × 10(6) or 2 × 10(6) P. brasiliensis yeast cells. The mAb was adm...

Interleukin 12 (IL-12) plays an important role in the induction of protective immunity against cancer and infectious diseases. In this study we asked whether IL-12 cDNA could increase the protective capacity of the antigen 2 (Ag2) gene vaccine in experimental coccidioidomycosis. Coimmunization of BALB/c mice with a single-chain IL-12 cDNA (p40-L-p35) and Ag2 cDNA, both subcloned into the pVR101...

background and purpose: airborne fungi are one of the most important agents responsible for triggering allergic reactions such as rhinitis and severe asthma. this study was conducted to analyze and monitor the prevalence and distribution patterns of atmospheric fungal aerosols in the air of qazvin during winter of 2012. materials and methods: in the current descriptive study, the incidence and ...

Fungal biofilters have been recently studied as an alternative to the bacterial systems for the elimination of hydrophobic volatile organic compounds (VOC). Fungi foster reduced transport limitation of hydrophobic VOCs due to their hydrophobic surface and extended gas exchange area associated to the hyphal growth. Nevertheless, one of their principal drawbacks is their slow growth, which is cri...

BACKGROUND The Dijon University Hospital in Dijon, France is involved in a large construction program with heavy truck traffic and a very dusty environment. This study aimed to assess the impact of outdoor hospital construction work on Aspergillus air contamination in the immediate environment of patients at high risk for aspergillosis in the presence of protective measures. METHODS Prospecti...

Paracoccidioides brasiliensis causes paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) that is one of the most prevalent systemic human mycoses in Latin America. Armadillos show a high incidence of PCM infection and could, therefore, be a natural reservoir for this fungus. In this study were compared the virulence profiles of isolates obtained from nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) (PbT1 and PbT4) and i...

the incidence of nosocomial fungal infections has increased dramatically during the past two decades as the consequence of continuous increase in the number of severely immunocompromised patients. this study was done to determine the presumptive sources of nosocomial fungal infections at the intensive care unit and transplant wards (in a university- based teaching hospital in tehran) during a 1...

introduction basidiobolomycosis is a rare disease that, unlike other fungal infections, affects immunocompetent individuals. it is caused by an environmental saprophyte named the fungus basidiobolus ranarum. basidiobolomycosis usually appears as a subcutaneous infection. gi basidiobolomycosis is an emerging disease, and the colon is the most frequent involved part of the gi tract. case presenta...