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Indoor mold due to water damage causes serious human respiratory disorders, and the remediation to homes, schools, and businesses is a major expense. Prevention of mold infestation of building materials would reduce health problems and building remediation costs. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) inhibit yeasts and a limited number of filamentous fungi. The purpose of this research was to determine the possible inhibitory activity of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on germination, fungal growth, and reproduction of Chaetomium globosum and other important filamentous fungi that occur in water-damaged buildings. Several NSAIDs were found to inhibit C. globosum germination, growth, and reproduction. The most effective NSAIDs inhibiting C. globosum were ibuprofen, diflunisal, and diclofenac. Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani, Aspergillus niger, and Stachybotrys atra were also tested on the various media with similar results obtained. However, F. oxysporum and A. niger exhibited a higher level of resistance to aspirin and NaSAL when compared to the C. globosum isolates. The inhibition exhibited by NSAIDs was variable depending on growth media and stage of fungal development. These compounds have a great potential of inhibiting fungal growth on building materials such as gypsum board. Formulations of sprays or building materials with NSAID-like chemical treatments may hold promise in reducing mold in homes and buildings.

Chaetomium globosum Kunze:Fr is a dermatophytic, dematiaceous fungus that is ubiquitous in soils, grows readily on cellulolytic materials, and is commonly found on water-damaged building materials. Chlorate affects nitrogen metabolism in fungi and is used to study compatibility among anamorphic fungi by inducing nit mutants. The effect of chlorate toxicity on C. globosum was investigated by amending a modified malt extract agar (MEA), oat agar, and carboxymethyl cellulose agar (CMC) with various levels of potassium chlorate (KClO(3)). C. globosum perithecia production was almost completely inhibited (90-100 %) at low levels of KClO(3) (0.1 mM) in amended MEA. Inhibition of perithecia production was also observed on oat agar and CMC at 1 and 10 mM, respectively. However, hyphal growth in MEA was only inhibited 20 % by 0.1-100 mM KClO(3) concentrations. Hyphal growth was never completely inhibited at the highest levels tested (200 mM). Higher levels of KClO(3) were needed on gypsum board to inhibit perithecia synthesis. In additional experiments, KClO(3) did not inhibit C. globosum, Fusarium oxysporum, Aspergillus niger, Penicillum expansum, and airborne fungal spore germination. The various fungal spores were not inhibited by KClO(3) at 1-100 mM levels. These results suggest that C. globosum perithecia synthesis is more sensitive to chlorate toxicity than are hyphal growth and spore germination. This research provides basic information that furthers our understanding about perithecia formation and may help in developing control methods for fungal growth on building materials.

We describe the first case of cutaneous infection caused by Chaetomium atrobrunneum and Clavispora lusitaniae in a one-and-a-half-year-old boy with acute and severe inflammation around his left eyelid. He presented to our outpatient center with a 6-day history and previously ineffective antibacterial therapy. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed hyphae and spores were on the surface of the crusty exudates and also penetrated into it, and the microbiology study further showed their characteristic cultural features. Fungal isolates were identified by the amplification and sequencing of the 26S RNA gene and of the ITS region, as C. lusitaniae and C. atrobrunneum. Up until now, most known clinical records of these rare species have shown them as agents of deep mycosis. Due to the emergency situation, medications were administered promptly and confirmed by subsequent fungal identification and successful therapeutic outcome. This article illustrates the importance of recognizing fungal infections, especially those caused by uncommon pathogens. Limitations in the routine identification procedures and therapeutic options of this emerging opportunistic agent are also discussed in this report.

An 11-year-old girl presented with multiple blisters on her the right foot complicated with cellulitis. The conventional and molecular identification were performed on the culture. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region in rRNA gene of the isolate was amplified by PCR. The sequence of the amplified ITS region matched 99 % with that of Chaetomium globosum in the GenBank. This is the first report describing C. globosum causing cutaneous infection in Malaysia.

Chaetomium globosum Kunze, has been identified as a potential antagonist of Cochliobolus sativus (S. Ito & Kurib.) Deschler ex Dastur. (Syn = Drechslera sorokiniana). Production of antifungal compounds by Chaetomium globosum (Cg) and their role in suppression of spot blotch of wheat caused by this fungus under in vitro and in vivo has been evaluated. Interaction between Chaetomium globosum isolates and C. sativus showed mycoparasitism by isolates Cg 1 and Cg 6 whereas isolates Cg 2, Cg 3, Cg 4 and Cg 5 showed antibiosis. Syringe filtered culture extracts of Cg 2 completely inhibited mycelial growth of C. sativus in liquid broth. In vitro bioassays were undertaken by amending the medium with crude extracts and agar diffusion method in order to assess the fungistatic activity of crude extracts from culture filtrates of different isolates of Chaetomium globosum. Significant differences in antagonism between isolates were observed. Antifungal metabolite profiling, on TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography) plates identified 13 compounds in isolate Cg 2, 11 compounds in Cg 3 and 7 compounds in Cg 6. Isolate Cg 1 produced only two faint bands and Cg 5 produced two bands of the same Rf value but of higher intensity. The production of antifungal compounds by isolates was positively correlated with antagonism to C. sativus on seedlings in glasshouse studies. The results showed high antifungal metabolite production by isolate Cg 2, which also gave maximum bioefficacy under laboratory and glasshouse conditions.

Bone marrow transplant recipients are highly susceptible to opportunistic fungal infections. This is the report, of the first case of a Chaetomium systemic infection described in Brazil. A 34 year-old patient with chronic myeloid leukemia underwent an allogeneic sibling matched bone marrow transplant. Seven months later, he developed systemic infection with enlargement of the axillary and cervical lymph nodes. Culture of the aspirates from both lymph nodes yielded Chaetomium globosum. The infection was successfully treated with amphotericin B. The increasing population of immunosupressed patients requires a careful microbiologic investigation for uncommon fungal infections.

Thirteen seed samples of lentil (Lens esculenta) were incubated on agar plate and moist filter papers (Moist Chambers) at 28 +/- 2 degrees C for determination of the incidence of seed-borne fungi. Aflatoxins content of the seeds was measured using the bright greenish- yellow fluorescence test (BGYF) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC). Sixty-nine species and seven varieties, which belong to 24 genera of fungi, were isolated from this crop. Of these fungi, 51 species and two varieties are considered new for this crop, whereas seven genera and 13 species are new to the mycoflora of the Sudan. The genus Aspergillus (13 species and 6 varieties) which comprising 44% of the total colony count was the most prevalent genus followed by Rhizopus (2 species, 19%), Penicillium (6 species) and Fusarium (8 species) (12%), Chaetomium (3 species) and Cladosporium (5 species) (6%), where the 18 genera (1-4 species) showed very low level of incidence (19%). Of the possible pathogens of lentil plants, F. oxysporum the main cause of vascular wilt was recovered from seeds of this crop. Thin layer chromatographic analysis of chloroform extracts of 13 seed samples showed that only one samples was naturally contaminated with aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2 (14.3 micrograms/kg).

Maize samples were collected from nine Grain Marketing Board (G.M.B) centers in Zimbabwe during the 1991 harvest season. A further 47 samples collected directly from farmers and from the G.M.B., centers in Chinhoyi and Kwekwe during the 1992 harvest season. These samples were analyzed mycologically and the predominant flora was Fusarium although Penicillium, Nigrospora, Aspergillus and Chaetomium could be isolated from some samples. From the first nine samples studied, F. verticillioides and F. subglutinans were isolated in almost equal proportions on samples from the central and the south of the country whereas only F. verticillioides was isolated on the samples from the north. The subsequent study demonstrated that there was a greater fungal diversity in samples from North (Mashonaland West) than samples from the South (Midlands area) with species of Nigrospora, Chaetomium, Acremonium and Diplodia occurring in significant numbers. From a total of 2821 fungal isolates obtained from all the maize samples analyzed, 1485 (53%) were found to belong to the liseola section of Fusarium. The ability of these isolates to produce the mycotoxins zearalenone, moniliformin and fumonisin B1 was tested using a simplified TLC Agar plate method. Out of the 886 isolates tested, only one produced all the three mycotoxins simultaneously whilst most produced fumonisin B1 and/or moniliformin. Only nine isolates produced zearalenone.

Fourteen species of keratinophilic fungi belonging to ten genera (Chrysoporium, Malbranchea, Chaetomium,Sepedonium, Microascus, Scopulariopsis, Curvularia, Fusarium, Aspergillus, Penicillium) were isolated from feathers of about one hundred living poultry birds. The isolated fungi were compared for their keratinase activity after growing them on two different media: (1) basal salts solution containing natural keratin (human hair) as the only source of carbon and nitrogen; (2) the medium was supplemented with a minor amount of readily assimilable source of carbon along with natural keratin. All the test fungi could grow on keratinous material, degrading it and releasing sulphydryl containing compounds detected as cysteine, total proteins and extracellular keratinase. Maximum enzyme release by these fungi occurred in the broth supplemented with glucose and vitamins, thereby indicating a correlation between the mycelial biomass and production of proteolytic keratinases.

In this paper we report a case of onychomycosis caused by Chaetomium globosum. The patient had lesions of the fingernails of the left hand. The direct microscopical examination of the nails showed light-brown hyphae with thick-walled cells. The histopathological examination revealed thick aggregated hyphal element in the nail plate. Amongst the antimycotics tested oxiconazole with MIC values of 0.3 microgram/ml-1 was found to be most effective in vitro against Chaetomium globosum.

Chaetomium globosum, the most common species within this genus, produces chaetoglobosins A and C when cultured on building material. Relatively low levels of these compounds have been shown to be lethal to various tissue culture cell lines. This study had two major objectives: (1) to determine the frequency at which Chaetomium species are isolated in water-damaged buildings and (2) to examine the production of chaetoglobosins A and C in isolates of C. globosum obtained from different buildings. Out of 794 water-damaged buildings, Chaetomium species were isolated in 49% of these structures. C. globosum ATCC 16021 was grown on four different media: oatmeal agar (OA), potato dextrose agar (PDA), corn meal agar (CMA), and malt extract agar (MEA). After 4 weeks, fungal growth was evaluated based on colony diameter and the quantity of spores produced on agar plates. In addition, production of chaetoglobosin A and C was monitored using high performance liquid chromatography. Colony diameter, spore production, and mycotoxin production by C. globosum were the highest on OA. Out of 30 C. globosum isolates cultured on OA for 4 weeks, 16 produced detectable amounts of chaetoglobosin A and every isolate produced chaetoglobosin C.

Kernel samples of common and dwarf Brazilian cashew nuts were highly contaminated with field and storage fungi in comparison to healthy ones. In general, dwarf cashews were more contaminated than common. A total of 37 fungal species were identified. Aspergillus niger was the dominant species with more colonies being isolated from dwarf kernels. A. flavus was the next most frequently isolated species. Penicillium brevicompactum, and P. glabrum were the most frequently isolated penicillia, with higher contamination recorded from dwarf kernels. Chaetomium globosum was recorded at a high level. Nine species were recorded from cashew kernels for the first time. Multimycotoxin analysis by tlc and hplc were positive for mycotoxins and other secondary metabolites particularly from the infected samples. Hplc was only carried out on dwarf cashews. Aflatoxins were not detected by quantitative high performance thin layer chromatography.

Auxarthron californiense, Mixotrichum aeruginosum, Oncocladium flavum and Chaetomium elatum were recognized on the basis of ascomatal structures on the remains of a Longobard abbess who died in the IX century A.D. These fungi, which had remained isolated in a crypt of the S. Felice Monastery of Pavia for almost 1000 years, are phenotypically identical to the type specimens. The occurrence of these fungi and their ecological role are discussed.

Sterigmatocystin (ST) is a secondary metabolite and a principal mycotoxin known to be produced by over 30 species of filamentous fungi. It is also one of the late intermediates in aflatoxin biosynthesis. We have tested the ability of 7 species of Aspergillus, including 4 strains of A. versicolor, one species of Bipolaris, and two species of Chaetomium, to produce ST on a sucrose-salts-phenylalanine defined medium as well as on three complex substrates. Highest ST production in our survey was by a strain of A. versicolor grown on wheat, whereas, the highest ST production on defined medium was by C. cellulolyticum. To our knowledge, this is the first report of ST production by C. cellulolyticum on any substrate. In precursor feeding studies, resting cultures of wild type A. nidulans and A. versicolor were unable to biotransform O-methylsterigmatocystin (OMST), the last known intermediate in aflatoxin biosynthesis. These results suggest that ST is the end product of polyketide metabolism in the strains tested.

100 species and 2 varieties of A. nidulans which belong to 35 genera were identified from 40 samples of barley collected from different places in Upper Egypt. Two methods of isolation were used: the grain-and the dilution plate. The spectrum of fungal genera and species collected by the former (35 genera, 96 species+1 variety) was broader than by the latter method (28 genera, 76 species+1 variety). Nine genera were of high occurrence (represented in more than 50% of the samples) namely, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, Alternaria, Chaetomium, Cladosporium, Humicola, Drechslera and Myrothecium. The most frequent species were A. fumigatus, A. niger, A. flavus, A. sydowii, F. oxysporum, F. moniliforme, A. alternata, M. verrucaria, P. funiculosum, P. corylophilum, P. duclauxi, C. herbarum, C. globosum, D. spicifera and H. grisea. Several fungi such as Chaetomium, Humicola, Altemaria, Drechslera, Stachybotrys, Myrothecium, Penicillium corylophilum and P. funiculosum were far more frequently recovered on cellulose than on glucose agar.

This paper presents previously unrecorded, (at least in the perfect state) ascosporic forms isolated from soil of the Talares District of the ‘Espinal’ phytogeografic Province of Argentina (Provincia de Buenos Aires), namely Emericella nidulans, Sartorya fumigata, Eupenicillium baarnense, E. javanicum, E. parvum, E. ludwigii, Hamigera avellanea, Talaromyces helicus var. major, T. trachyspermus, T. wortmanii, Dichotomomyces cejpii var. spinosus, Chaetomium aterrinum and Ch. indicum. It is a policy in this series to present descriptions and illustrations of all species recorded for the first time, however common elsewhere, and annotate any differences that may be observed in later isolations.

Seventy-five species in addition to 5 varieties of cellulose-decomposing which belong to 27 genera were collected during this investigation. Aspergillus (12 species + 4 varieties), Alternaria (4 species), Stachybotrys (3 species + 1 variety), and Penicillium (12 species) were of high frequency of occurrence, of which A. fumigatus, A. niger, A. terreus, A. alternata, A. tenuissima, S. atra, P. citrinum and P. corylophilum were the most common. Six genera were of moderate frequency and these were Botryotrichum (2 species), Macrophomina (1 species), Drechslera (5 species), Ulocladium (4 species), Chaetomium (7 species) and Curvularia (4 species) of which B. atrogriseum, D. spicifera, D. sativus, Ubotrytis, C. spirale and C. lunata were the most prevalent. Five and twelve genera were recovered on cellulose-Czapek's agar plates in low and rare frequency of occurrence, respectively.

The seasonal fluctuations of fungi were studied in 72 soil samples collected at 10-day intervals between January 1972 and December 1973. The richest periods in the fungal population were January, March and September–December 1972, and April, May, September, November and December 1973. The poorest months were consistently June and July of 1972 and 1973 and August 1973 which are all summer months. Thirty-nine genera were isolated of which Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, Mucor, Rhizopus and Humicola were of high seasonal occurrence. Seven genera were of moderate occurrence and these were Cochliobolus,Stachybotrys, Paecilomyces, Cunninghamella, Myrothecium, Chaetomium and Sepedonium. The remaining genera were of low or rare seasonal occurrence. Aspergillus showed its highest prevalence during the periods May-September 1972 and April-August 1973. Twenty-four species of Aspergillus in addition to two varieties of A. nidulans were isolated, of which A. niger, A. fumigatus, A. terreus, A. nidulans and A. sydowii were dominant. Thirty species of Penicillium were identified, of which P. notatum, P. funiculosum and P. chrysogenum were of high seasonal occurrence. Penicillium predominated during winter and spring months. Fusarium showed its highest percentage populations during the periods February, March, April, October, November and December 1972 and February, August, September, October and November 1973. Four species of Mucor were recorded of which M. racemosus was the commonest; and its highest percentage populations were recorded in November 1972; and February, March and November 1973 which are moderate temperature months. Rhizopus was represented by two species of which R. nigricans was of high seasonal occurrence. Three species of Humicola were isolated of which H. grisea was the most common.

97 soils samples of Tarragona city and outskirts were analysed. We were isolated the following keratinophilic fungi: Microsporum gypseum, Trichophyton ajelloi, Ctenomyces serratus, Malbranchea state of C. uncinatus, Chrysosporium tropicum, Chrysosporium evolceanui, Chrysosporium asperatum, Chrysosporium pruinosum (?), Auxarthron thaxteri, Gymnoascus petalosporus, Gymnoascus reesii, Chaetomium murorum, Chaetomium spirale and Chaetomium sp. On explaine the distribution of different isolated species.