Aspergillus
Group of diseases caused by Aspergillus species:
Habitat:
 "Aspergillum": Name of asexual spore-forming
structure / Mold / World-wide in nature.
 1/3 of species are known to have a sexual stage.
 Highly aerobic / Grow as molds.
 Common contaminants of starchy foods.
 Species of Aspergillus demonstrate oligotrophy
(ability to grow in nutrient-depleted enviro-nments , or
environments in which there is a complete lack of key
nutrients).
Pathogenicity:
 Some species cause serious diseases in humans
and animals / Other species are important as
agricultural pathogens.
 Range of human diseases:
a. Infection to the external ear
b. Skin lesions
c. Ulcers classed as mycetomas
 Also some species cause ALLERGIC DISEASE (Ex:
A. fumigatus and A. clavatus)
 Most common human pathogen: A. fumigatus.
 Other human pathogens:
a. A. flavus
b. A. niger
c. A. nidulans
 A. flavus produces aflatoxin (which is both a toxin
and a carcinogen), and which can potentially
contaminate foods such as nuts.
Useful Aspects:
 Other species are important in commercial microbial
fermentations (alcoholic beverages).
 Members of the genus are also sources of natural
products that can be used in the development of
medications to treat human disease.
Aspergillosis
1. Paranasal Sinus Infections: associated with
Aspergillus fumigatus.
2. Allergic Bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis or
ABPA, which affects patients with respiratory
diseases like asthma, cystic fibrosis, and sinusitis).
3. Acute Invasive Aspergillosis: Disseminated
fungal infection that occur as pneumonia then
spreading and growing into surrounding tissues
(brain – heart – kidneys) via bloodstream / more
common in those with weakened immune systems
such as AIDS or chemotherapy patients.
4. Aspergilloma: a "fungus ball" that grows within lung
cavities of patients treated from TB.
Aspergillus fumigatus
 Saprophytic fungus: grows on organic debris /
recycling environmental carbon and nitrogen.
 Ubiquitous / natural ecological niche is the soil.
 Sporulates abundantly: every conidial head
producing thousands of airborne conidia.
 All humans will inhale at least several hundred A.
fumigatus conidia per day / Individuals exposed
repeatedly to conidia develop a clinical condition
known as “farmer’s lung”.
 The conidia released into the atmosphere have a
diameter small enough to reach the lung alveoli.
 For most patients, therefore, disease occurs
predominantly in lungs, although dissemination to
virtually any organ could also occur.
 Inhalation of conidia by immunocompetent
individuals rarely has any adverse effect, since
conidia are eliminated efficiently by innate immune
mechanisms.
 A. fumigatus is the most prevalent airborne fungal
pathogen: causing severe and usually fatal invasive
infections in immunocompromised hosts in developed
countries.
 No sexual stage is known for this species.

Virulence factors of A. fumigatus that are

involved in invasive infections include:

1. Adhesins: Enable the fungus to adhere to the

human respiratory epithelia.
2. Hydrolases: Enable the fungus to penetrate the
barriers.
3. Toxic molecules: Enable the fungus to kill the
surrounding cells, especially phagocytic cells that
are actively involved in defense against A.
fumigatus.
Identification of A. fumigatus:
Based on morphology of conidia and conidiophores:
A) Conidia:
 2.5-3 mm in diameter
 Green (may be white in some isolates)
 Subglobose and echinulate (spiky)
 Arranged basipetally
 Produced in chains from phialides
 Uniseriate (arranged in one row)
B) Phialides:
 Greenish projects from the mycelium
 Closely compacted / found only on the upper
portion of the conidial head
 2-3 X 6-8 mm in size
C) Conidial head:
 Clavate / club-shaped vesicles
 20-30 mm in diameter
D) Conidiophores: smooth-walled / uncolored
E) Hyphae: Septate / hyaline
Colony Morphology:
 Fast grower.
 Morphologically variable.
 Thermophilic (growth occurring at temperatures as
high as 55°C and survival maintained at
temperatures up to 70°C).
 Texture: Downy to powdery.
 Surface color: Varies according to species.
 Reverse color: Mostly uncolored to pale yellow.
 On potato dextrose agar (at 25°C), colonies are
smoky gray-green with a slight yellow reverse.
Biochemical characterizations:
These include the detection and identification of:
 Secondary metabolites (mycotoxins / antibiotics)
 Ubiquinone system
 Isoenzyme patterns
Diagnosis:
A) PCR based techniques for the detection of A.
fumigatus DNA. Extreme care must be taken to avoid
false-positive or false-negative results. False-positive
results are more difficult to control, since conidia are
often present in the air. Sometimes, false-positive
results can be generat-ed by the transient presence
of aspergilla in the respiratory tract.