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Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillosis

Jean-Paul Latgé
- 01 Apr 1999 - 
- Vol. 12, Iss: 2, pp 310-350
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TLDR
This review focuses on the biology of A. fumigatus, one of the most ubiquitous of the airborne saprophytic fungi, and the diseases it causes, and discusses discussions of genomic and molecular characterization of the organism.
Abstract
Aspergillus fumigatus is one of the most ubiquitous of the airborne saprophytic fungi. Humans and animals constantly inhale numerous conidia of this fungus. The conidia are normally eliminated in the immunocompetent host by innate immune mechanisms, and aspergilloma and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, uncommon clinical syndromes, are the only infections observed in such hosts. Thus, A. fumigatus was considered for years to be a weak pathogen. With increases in the number of immunosuppressed patients, however, there has been a dramatic increase in severe and usually fatal invasive aspergillosis, now the most common mold infection worldwide. In this review, the focus is on the biology of A. fumigatus and the diseases it causes. Included are discussions of (i) genomic and molecular characterization of the organism, (ii) clinical and laboratory methods available for the diagnosis of aspergillosis in immunocompetent and immunocompromised hosts, (iii) identification of host and fungal factors that play a role in the establishment of the fungus in vivo, and (iv) problems associated with antifungal therapy.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI

Genomic sequence of the pathogenic and allergenic filamentous fungus Aspergillus fumigatus

William C. Nierman, +120 more
- 22 Dec 2005 - 
TL;DR: The Af293 genome sequence provides an unparalleled resource for the future understanding of this remarkable fungus and revealed temperature-dependent expression of distinct sets of genes, as well as 700 A. fumigatus genes not present or significantly diverged in the closely related sexual species Neosartorya fischeri, many of which may have roles in the pathogenicity phenotype.
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TL;DR: A review of previous guidelines and strategies for preventing environment-associated infections in health-care facilities and offers recommendations can be found in this article, where the authors suggest a series of performance measurements as a means to evaluate infection-control efforts.
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Invasive aspergillosis in allogeneic stem cell transplant recipients: changes in epidemiology and risk factors

TL;DR: Risk factor analyses verify previously recognized risk factors (GVHD, receipt of corticosteroids, and neutropenia) and uncover the roles of lymphopenia and viral infections in increasing the incidence of postengraftment IA in the 1990s.
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Pathogenesis of Aspergillus fumigatus in Invasive Aspergillosis

TL;DR: An overview of the significant findings regarding A. fumigatus pathogenesis as it pertains to invasive disease is provided.
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TL;DR: Major shifts in the etiology of nosocomial infection have occurred in the decade of the 1980s, and the shifts are away from more easily treated pathogens toward more resistant pathogens with fewer options for therapy.
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Amphotericin B: 30 Years of Clinical Experience

TL;DR: The clinical uses of amphotericin B are discussed, including its application in AIDS-related fungal infections, in neutropenic cancer patients who are persistently febrile, and in infections of the central nervous system, lung, peritoneum, genitourinary system, eye, and skin.
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