title: Edible dates (Phoenix dactylifera), a potential source of Cladosporium cladosporioides and Sporobolomyces roseus: implications for public health.
abstract: Edible dates (Phoenix dactylifera) were examined for the presence of endogenous yeasts and filimentous fungi. Mean counts of fungi were 530 colony forming units (cfu) per gram of fruit, representing a mixture of two phenotypic colony types. Subsequent DNA extraction and PCR amplification of these two morphotypes yielded an amplicon of approximately 350 bp with the 5.8S-28S rRNA ITS region. Sequence analysis identified these to be Cladosporium cladosporioides (230 cfu/g) and Sporobolomyces roseus. Both organisms have been previously reported in opportunistic infections involving skin or in immunocompromised patients. This is the first report of edible dates being a source of these organisms and we emphasize the importance of the common practice of washing hands following the consumption of these fruits by hand.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Belfast City Hospital, Northern Ireland. jemoore@niphl.dnet.co.uk
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: B Cherie
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Millar
authors.forename: Salah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elshibly
mesh_terms: D028023:Arecaceae / Q000382:microbiology; D001487:Basidiomycota / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002963:Cladosporium / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005638:Fruit / Q000382:microbiology*; D020459:Genes, rRNA; D006801:Humans; D009894:Opportunistic Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D010572:Pest Control, Biological / Q000379:methods*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011634:Public Health; D017421:Sequence Analysis