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Mucormycoses are life-threatening fungal diseases that affect a variety of patients including those with diabetes mellitus or hematological malignancies. The responsible agents, the Mucorales, are opportunistic pathogens originating from the environment such as soil or decaying organic matter. The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence and diversity of human-pathogenic species of Mucorales in commercially available foodstuffs in France. All food samples were purchased from January 2014 to May 2015 in France. A total of 159 dried food samples including spices and herbs (n = 68), herbal tea (n = 19), cereals (n = 19), vegetables (n = 14), and other foodstuffs (n = 39) were analyzed. Each strain of Mucorales was identified phenotypically, and molecular identification was performed by ITS sequencing. From the 28 (17.6%) samples that were culture-positive for Mucorales, 30 isolates were recovered. Among the isolates, 13 were identified as Rhizopus arrhizus var. arrhizus, 10 R. arrhizus var. delemar, two Rhizopus microsporus, one Lichtheimia corymbifera, three Lichtheimia ramosa, and one Syncephalastrum racemosum. Culture-positive samples originated from different countries (Europe, Asia) and brands. The samples most frequently contaminated by Mucorales were spices and herbs (19/68, 27.9%), followed by herbal tea (2/19, 10.5%), cereals (2/19, 10.5%), other food products (5/39, 12.8%). The present study showed that human-pathogenic Mucorales were frequently recovered from commercially available foodstuffs in France with a large diversity of species. The potential danger represented by Mucorales present in food for immunocompromised patients should be further analyzed., (© The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The International Society for Human and Animal Mycology.)

The aims of this network group were to collect epidemiological data of PcP cases in 14 hospitals in the Paris area and to determine the Di-Hydro Pteroate Synthase (DHPS) genotypes, genetic markers for possible sulfamide resistance. From January 1, 2003 to December 31, 2008, 993 (mean 166/year) PcP cases have been reported. Sixty-five percent of patients were HIV-positive. The median count of CD4 lymphocytes was 32/mm(3) (30 in HIV-positive patients, 152 in HIV-negative patients). In HIV-positive patients, PcP revealed the HIV infection in 39%. Among 304 PcP occurring in HIV known infected patients, no prophylaxis was prescribed for 64%; cotrimoxazole prophylaxis had been prescribed to 47 patients but only one of them had the right compliance. In HIV-negative patients (264), corticosteroids were prescribed in 59% and cytotoxic chemotherapies in 34%; 78% did not receive prophylaxis. One hundred sixty nine tumoral pathologies and 116 transplantations were notified. The mortality rate was 16% at day 14 (13% in HIV-positive patients, 26% in HIV-negative patients). Mutations in DHPS genes were detected in 18.5% of samples; 12.5% of patients were infected with several strains. The total annual number of cases has been stable for five years but the proportion of HIV-negative patients increased from 25% to 43%.