title: Fusarium species recovered from the water distribution system of a French university hospital.
abstract: Dijon Hospital is a French tertiary care institution undergoing major renovation, and different microbiological controls revealed the presence of Fusarium spp. in the water distribution system. Because some Fusarium spp. can cause life-threatening opportunistic infections in immunocompromised patients, an 8-month survey was conducted in two hospital sites in order to evaluate the prevalence of the fungi in the water system. In 2 units of one hospital site, 100% of the samples of tap-water were positive, with high concentrations of Fusarium spp. (up to 10(5)cfu/L). In the second hospital site, 94% of samples were positive, but generally with lower concentrations. The analysis of translation elongation factor 1α (TEF) sequences of 146 isolates revealed the presence of two different Fusarium species: F. oxysporum was detected in all units explored of both hospital sites, and F. dimerum only in one unit of one hospital site. For both species, we suggest that the fungi discovered could be particularly adapted to an aquatic environment.
authors.affiliation: Parasitology and Mycology laboratory, Plateau Technique de Biologie du CHU, 2 rue Angélique Ducoudray, BP 37013, 21070 Dijon Cedex, France. msautour@u-bourgogne.fr
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sautour
authors.forename: Véronique
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Edel-Hermann
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Steinberg
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sixt
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Laurent
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Dalle
authors.forename: Serge
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aho
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hartemann
authors.forename: Coralie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: L'ollivier
authors.forename: Marianne
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goyer
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bonnin
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005602:France; D005670:Fusarium / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006785:Hospitals, University; D014871:Water Microbiology; D060753:Water Quality; D014881:Water Supply