Rapid quantification of itraconazole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus in air

Abstract

27Solid-phase cytometry (SPC) was used to determine the total number and the number 28 of itraconazole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus cells in 60 air samples. Of the 570 A. 29 fumigatus cells that were recovered, 10 (1.8%) were resistant. SPC proved more 30 specific and rapid than culture and allowed high-troughput susceptibility testing. 31

Susceptibility of adult pigeons and hybrid falcons to experimental aspergillosis

“…In poultry houses, concentrations up to 2.1 )10 3 conidia/m 3 were recorded in spring (Ault & Schott, 1994). However, Vanhee et al (2009Vanhee et al ( , 2010 reported much lower concentrations indoors, in poultry houses and pigeon houses, as observed in our study. The falcons in the present study inhaled approximately 50 A. fumigatus conidia from ambient air each day.…”

Assessment of selection and resistance risk for demethylation inhibitor fungicides in Aspergillus fumigatus in agriculture and medicine: a critical review

“…In a recent report, the medical hygienist S. Engelhart described the increased occurrence of invasive aspergilloses in immunosuppressive patients in German hospitals as being primarily related to: (1) demolition, construction and renovation work in hospitals and their surroundings; (2) the lifting of litter and dust outdoors by helicopters and indoors by ventilation systems, vacuum cleaners and air‐conditioners without adequate filters; (3) work in gardens and homes with planting substrates and exposure to composting places/facilities; and (4) lack of care when handling biowaste. Compared with the rather low spore concentrations in air (2–30 m ‐3 ) in a garden centre, a botanical garden and a forest in Belgium, higher values (10–70 m ‐3 ) were observed in a house during renovation, a pigeon coop and a compost bin . Together with other Aspergillus , Penicillium , Botrytis , Stachybotris , Cladosporium and Alternaria species, A. fumigatus spores can cause strong allergic reactions if sensitive persons are exposed to high spore concentrations .…”

“…Repeated exposure of patients to antimycotics, especially to DMIs, can lead to drug resistance in A. fumigatus . Indeed, DMI‐resistant isolates have been found in patients for some years in several European countries and India, and resistant spores are present in the air . Fluconazole, introduced to the market in the 1980s, with limited activity against Aspergillus species, is frequently used as prophylaxis in leukaemia patients and bone marrow transplant recipients.…”

“…After isolation, many in vitro resistant A. fumigatus isolates were less virulent in a mouse model . However, resistant A. fumigatus isolates can obviously survive in nature and may be equally fit as wild‐type isolates.…”

An Invisible Threat: Mutation-Mediated Resistance to Triazole Drugs in Aspergillus

“…Conidia of these species are found in both indoor and outdoor environments [3,4]. Consequently, chronic exposure to Aspergillus conidia is an unavoidable consequence of breathing.…”