Association Between the Human Pathogen Sporothrix schenckii and Sphagnum Moss

Dixon, Dennis R.; Salkin, Ira F.

doi:10.1007/978-1-4612-3168-4_12

Cited by 3 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Two predictions of this hypothesis are that S. schenckii should be recovered from samples of living moss and that the fungus should grow in association with living sphagnum. The former has been investigated, albeit incompletely, with negative results [3][4][5][6]. Here we report on the latter prediction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…The beneficial properties of sphagnum result from its very high water-h01ding capacity; hence its various applications in floral arrangements, as a seeding medium, in vegetative propagation, and as a mulch in which bare-root nursery stock is shipped. Most of the commercial moss used nationally is produced in Wisconsin, and where the origin of sphagnum implicated in the sporotrichosis epidemics is known, the source is almost without exception this state [3]. Dead moss has been associated with many sporotrichosis cases in the USA, including at least 10 outbreaks between 1941-1988 [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Dead moss has been associated with many sporotrichosis cases in the USA, including at least 10 outbreaks between 1941-1988 [3]. The most recent and largest epidemic in this country occurred in 1988 and involved 84 people in 15 states [3,4]. All the victims handled sphagnum originating from a single dealer in Wisconsin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Improvement of a selective medium. Mycosel TM agar (BBL, Becton Dickinson, Cockeysville, MD) is a standard selective medium for the isolation of pathogenic fungi from substrates substantially contaminated by other microorganisms [7] and appears to be the medium of choice for isolating S. schenckii [3,4]. In preliminary trials with moss samples, we found, however, that petri plates were typically overgrown by bacteria and to some extent by other fungi.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most of the commercial moss used nationally is produced in Wisconsin, and where the origin of sphagnum implicated in the sporotrichosis epidemics is known, the source is almost without exception this state [3]. Dead moss has been associated with many sporotrichosis cases in the USA, including at least 10 outbreaks between 1941-1988 [3]. The most recent and largest epidemic in this country occurred in 1988 and involved 84 people in 15 states [3,4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evidence for growth ofSporothrix schenckii on dead but not on living sphagnum moss

Zhang

Andrews

1993

Mycopathologia

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When clinical isolates of Sporothrix schenckii were inoculated onto the apices of living or dead sphagnum moss plants maintained under growth chamber conditions, populations of the fungus, assessed by standard dilution plate methods, increased swiftly up to about 70-fold on moist, dead plants but did not increase on the live moss. Light and scanning electron microscopy revealed fungal growth and sporulation on and within dead plants, but no evidence of either on live plants. These data provide indirect support for the contention that S. schenckii does not grow on living sphagnum in bogs, but rather that sporotrichosis epidemics associated with sphagnum moss are likely to result from contamination of the dead plants at some point(s) in the chain of events during or after harvest. One practical implication of our results is that precautions should be taken to insure that sphagnum moss is stored dry and that it is not wetted any sooner than necessary before use. We also report here improvement of the Mycoses isolation medium by an increase in cycloheximide from 400 to 800 mg/l, chloramphenicol from 50 to 250 mg/l, and the addition of rifampicin at 20 mg/l.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evidence for growth ofSporothrix schenckii on dead but not on living sphagnum moss

Zhang

Andrews

1993

Mycopathologia

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DNA typing of isolates associated with the 1988 sporotrichosis epidemic

et al. 1992

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DNA typing techniques were used to examine selected clinical and environmental isolates of Sporothorix spp. recovered from the 1988 sporotrichosis epidemic in multiple states of the United States. Previous studies indicated that isolates in one of the six morphologically or physiologically distinct groups (group I) obtained from environmental sources were Sporothrix schenckii and were the possible etiologic agents responsible for the epidemic. To assess this hypothesis at the genetic level, whole-cell DNA was extracted from selected clinical isolates and representative members of each of the six environmental groups subjected to endonuclease digestion and then analyzed by gel electrophresis. DNA types were assigned on the basis of restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns. One DNA type was common to clinical and group I isolates but was dissimilar from the DNA types exhibited by groups II to VI. In contrast, a variety of DNA types were associated with isolates in groups II to VI. The latter groups appeared to make up a heterogeneous collection of fungi, with some members of the same group having different DNA types but with others from different groups possessing identical DNA types. Thus, DNA typing studies confirmed that group I environmental isolates are indistinguishable from clinical isolates and that group II to VI isolates represent a complex of related fungi with similar Sporothrix anamorphs.

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Recent literature on bryophytes — 120(1)

Buck

Atwood

2017

The Bryologist

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Association Between the Human Pathogen Sporothrix schenckii and Sphagnum Moss

Cited by 3 publications

References 21 publications

Evidence for growth ofSporothrix schenckii on dead but not on living sphagnum moss

Evidence for growth ofSporothrix schenckii on dead but not on living sphagnum moss

DNA typing of isolates associated with the 1988 sporotrichosis epidemic

Recent literature on bryophytes — 120(1)

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