LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

OUTLINE

I Classifications of Fungi
Anthropophilic (rare) In contact with man
A. Geographic grouping

B. Epidemiologic grouping ● Taxonomy grouping

o according to morphologic and culture characteristics
i Geophilic ● Topographic grouping
o type of mycosis produced
ii Zoophilic
o most often used
iii Anthropophilic
TOPOGRAPHIC GROUPING OF FUNGI
C. Taxonomy grouping
SUPERFICIAL
D. Topographic grouping - Confined to the outermost layers of the skin and hair
- No host cellular or inflammatory response due to
II Topographic Grouping of Fungi organisms being remote from living tissue
- Essentially no pathology; disease is recognized purely on
A Superficial
cosmetic basis
B Cutaneous
NOTE!
C Subcutaneous
No tendency of inflammation because “superficial” cell is dead,
D Systemic and there is no presence of edema
i Categories of Systemic Disease

III Systemic Diseases

IV Mycology CUTANEOUS
- In the keratin of the skin, nails, and hair; prefer non-living
A Saprophytes
cornified layers
i Hyaline Members - disease: dermatophytosis/dermatomycosis
- host response is patchy scaling or eczema eruptions
ii Dematiaceous Members - classified according to the area of the body that is involved
iii Aseptate Members
SUBCUTANEOUS
B Yeasts - Involves the deeper layers of skin and often muscle tissue
- Blood is involved
C Bacteria-like Fungi - Possible formation of pus
- Man: accidental host following inoculation of fungal
D Dimorphic Fungi
spores via some form of trauma
E Superficial Mycoses - Accidental puncture or prick: happens mostly to
gardener or farmers
F Cutaneous Mycoses - Often identified by the presence of a characteristic tissue
reaction or granule

SYSTEMIC
- Attack the deep tissues and organ systems; often creating
CLASSIFICATIONS OF FUNGI
symptoms that resemble other diseases
● Geographic grouping
o where they exist
● Epidemiologic grouping
o how organism is transmitted

Table No. 1 Epidemiological Groups

GROUP DEFINITION

Geophilic (most common) In contact with soil

Zoophilic In contact with animal host

 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

○ Ex: Histoplasma capsulatum, Blastomyces

dermatitidis, Coccidioides immitis,
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis
● Caused by opportunistic fungi
○ Low virulence organisms which require the
patient’s defenses to be lowered before the
infection is established
○ Occurring with persons who have primary
diseases that weaken their immunity which lead
to secondary infection
○ Ex: Aspergillus spp., Candida albicans,
Cryptococcus neoformans

NOTE!

CATEGORIES OF SYSTEMIC DISEASE Candida albicans - normal flora of human GIT especially in the
● Caused by truly pathogenic fungi intestine and stomach
○ With ability to cause disease in the normal
Deep mycoses – mostly affects the lungs
human host when the inoculum is of sufficient
size Salicylic acid – used to treat “an-an” before

SYSTEMIC DISEASES

DISEASE DEFINITION PICTURE

Tinea/Pityriasis ● Malassezia furfur - causative agent;

versicolor can be removed by salicylic acid

● Normal skin commensal

● Lipophilic yeast – capsulated: contains

coat that can’t be easily removed

● Looks like “an-an”

Tinea nigra ● Can only be found on hands, palms,

and sometimes feet

● If found on other location, that will be

called melasma (which is not caused
by a fungi)

Black piedra ● Scalp hair

(Left picture)

White piedra ● Beard, eyebrow, pubic hair (rarely:

scalp)
(Right picture)

Dermatophytosis (Epidermophyton floccosum)

Tinea capitis ● ringworm

● Capitis meaning “head”, most often

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

seen on children

● Can be prevented by proper hygiene

Tinea barbae ● Found on beard

Tinea corporis ● Ringworm of the body

Tinea cruris ● Ringworm

● Jock itch

● Found in inguinal area

● May be due to sweat allergy

Tinea manuum ● ringworm

● “manuum” = hand

Tinea pedis ● ringworm

● “pedis” = feet

● “athlete’s foot”

● Can be acquired when feet got soaked

on the flood

Tinea unguium ● Thickening & discoloration of the nail

(onychomycosis)

Ectothrix ● Hair loss

Endothrix ● Hair breakage

Chromoblastomycosis ● a chronic fungal infection of the skin

and subcutaneous tissue

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

Mycetoma ● a chronic, granulomatous disease of

the skin and subcutaneous tissue,
which sometimes involves muscle,
bone, and neighboring organs

Table No. 3 Mycology

SAPROPHYTES

● Contaminates or opportunistic pathogens

● Most are inhibited by cycloheximide

● Grouped by type of mycelia produced

○ Septate vs. aseptate

○ Hyaline vs. dematiaceous

SAPROPHYTES: HYALINE MEMBERS

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Aspergillus spp. ● Growth rate varies, colors vary, surface velvety to

cottony

● Mycelium - septate and hyaline with unbranched

conidiophores (compared to Syncephalastrum,
which appears similar, but is aseptate)

● Structure

Aspergillus fumigatus ● Considered a potential pathogen, especially if

from a pulmonary source

● Blue/Green colony

● Phialides with spores are directed upward

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

Aspergillus niger ● Black colony

● Black spores surround the vesicle

Aspergillus terreus ● Sandy colored colony

● Resistance to amphotericin B

Paecilomyces spp. ● Rapid grower, colors vary

● Brush-like conidiophores

● Long, tapered sterigmata

Penicillium spp. ● Commonly rapid growing; white to bluish-green

● Conidiophores characteristically form a brush-

shaped structure

● Sterigmata are flask shaped

● Most common mold in the environment

● Bread mold

● Uncommon cause of human disease

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

Scopulariopsis spp. ● Moderately slow growing

● White turning brown with age

● Branched or unbranched conidiophores

● Sterigmata are coarsely roughened

Trichoderma spp. ● Moderately rapid growth

● Flask-shaped conidiophores

● Conidia are clustered

Fusarium spp. ● Rapid growth, white colonies may become brightly

colored

● Short conidiophores often branched, have macro-

and micro-conidia which are oval to sickle-shaped

○ Macro - oblong with many cells

○ Micro - oblong with one cell

○ Sickle - crescent shape

● Has been reported to cause eye infections

● Generally a plant disease

SAPROPHYTES: DEMATIACEOUS MEMBERS

Dematiaceous – hypha stained is not clear

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Alternaria spp. ● Rapid growth

● colonies become very dark with age

● may become overgrown with looser white to gray

aerial mycelium

● Conidiophores bear single or branched chains of

large, brown conidia

Curvularia spp. ● Rapid growth

● velvety colonies vary in color from grayish-brown

to black

● Spirally arranged brown conidia are borne at the

tips

● Brown, septate, unbranched conidiophores

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

Cladosporium spp. ● Rapid growth

● green colonies

● reverse is black

● Septate, dematiaceous mycelium

● Conidia are borne in chains

SAPROPHYTES: ASEPTATE MEMBERS

● All are susceptible to cycloheximide

● Rapid growers

● Some have root-like structures termed rhizoids

● Spore bearing structures are called sporangiophores

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Mucor spp. ● Very rapid growth

● can fill a culture tube in one day

● Unbranched sporangiophores

● No rhizoids

● Rhinocerebral mucormycosis

Rhizopus spp. ● Rhizoids are present

● Sporangiophores nodal in origin

Syncephalastrum spp. ● Very rapid growth

● White to dark gray colonies with dense, cottony,

aerial mycelium

● Aseptate, hyaline mycelium, with short, branched

sporangiophores, terminating into tips

● Many tubular sporangia containing chains of

spores

YEASTS

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Candida albicans ● Cutaneous infections such as oral thrush or

vaginitis, but can become systemic

● ID by positive germ tube test, or production of

chlamydospore on cornmeal agar

● Culture at 37°C

● C. glabrata – never forms pseudohypha

Cryptococcus ● Associated with pigeon feces

neoformans
● Has thick capsule; affects the brain

● Grows at 37° and produces melanin-like pigment

on caffeic acid agar

● ID in CSF by India ink stain for capsule

● Life cycle:

Geotrichum spp. ● Commonly present in GI tract

● Implicated in respiratory infections, frequently as

a secondary invader

● Causes disease in the immunosuppressed

● Produces arthrospores

BACTERIA-LIKE FUNGI

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

● Some produce sulfur granules (Actinomyces israeli)

● Often require special media, stains, & conditions for growth, i.e. anaerobic
(Actinomycetes spp)

● Some are partially acid-fast (Nocardia spp)

DIMORPHIC FUNGI

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Sporothrix schenckii ● Rose fever, gardeners often affected

● Infection via traumatic implantation

Coccidioides immitis ● San Joaquin valley fever

● Mycelial phase present in culture

● Yeast phase in tissue

Histoplasma capsulatum ● Mississippi valley fever

● Associated with bird and bat droppings

● Disease mimics tuberculosis

● Found frequently in reticuloendothelial cells as

extracellular inclusions

● Appearance at 30°C is white and cottony

● Microscopic exam: Tuberculate (projections)

macroconidia is the structure used for ID.

● Microconidia - infectious particle

Blastomyces ● North American Blastomycosis (Gilchrist’s

dermatitidis disease)

● Large yeast cells with single bud

● Culture at 37°C

● Slow growing yeast colony taking 4 weeks to form

a colony

● Yeast cell is 8-20 um in size and is unique for its

Broad-based budding pattern and the double
contoured wall

Paracoccidioides ● South American Blastomycosis

brasiliensis
● Large yeast cells with multiple buds (Mariner’s
wheel)

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

SUPERFICIAL MYCOSES

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Malassezia furfur ● Cause of pityriasis versicolor (tinea versicolor)

Phaeoannellomyces ● Cause of superficial phaeohyphomycosis (Tinea

werneckii nigra)

● “-annello” – ring formation

Trichosporon beigelii ● Cause of white piedra

● Now T. asahii

● Commonly affects pubic hair, axillary hair, beards,

eyebrows

● May be T. ovoides for scalp hair

Piedraia hortae ● Cause of black piedra

● Discovered by Horta, 1911

● Affects scalp hair

● Piedra - Spanish for stone

CUTANEOUS MYCOSES

SPECIES DEFINITION PICTURE

Microsporum spp ● Hair, skin, rarely nails

● Frequently in children, rarely in adults

● Often spontaneous remission occurs (ringworm

● Macroconidia are attached singly

● Thick walled

● Mature forms are echinulate (spiny)

Trichophyton spp ● Hair, skin, and nails

● In both children and adults (athlete’s foot)

● Macroconidia are attached singly

● Have smooth walls

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 LESSON 3: Classifications of Fungi

Epidermophyton spp ● Skin, nails, rarely hair

● Frequently In adults, rarely in children (ringworm)

● Macroconidia are attached in multiples

● Smooth walls (beaver tails)

● Grows slowly

● “buni” of the elderlies

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION!
1. Fungi – generally Gram positive; usually handled in BSC, with the use of lactophenol stain (blue color)
2. Teleomorph – fungi in sexual reproduction
3. Anamorph – fungi in asexual reproduction
4. Synanamorph – always asexual reproduction
5. Carnii – the person who described Pneumocystis carnii as a protozoa, but is later on determined as fungi
- It is also called Pneumocystis carinii
6. BHI – stands for Brain Heart Infusion
7. In culture media, the top/aerial portion is not the only one to be observed. The bottom/reverse/overse part must also be observed for
vegetative purposes
8. If a person has HIV, he/she always have “singaw”
9. Tumor – also refers to swelling or inflammation, and not always on cancerous cells
10. In the tissue, yeast is found. In the culture, mycelia is found.
11. Blastospores – “many”
12. Eumycotic – means true nucleus; fungi

REFERENCES
Notes from the discussion of Mrs. Flordeliza A. De Guzman, RMT, MAT-PHYS
Notes from the synchronous session of Mrs. Flordeliza A. De Guzman, RMT, MAT-PHYS
Cavite State University powerpoint presentation: Lesson 3 - Classifications of Fungi

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