title: Schizophyllum commune as an emerging fungal pathogen: a review and report of two cases.
abstract: We report Schizophyllum commune as the aetiological agent of one case each of allergic broncho-pulmonary mycosis (ABPM) and pulmonary fungal ball, and present a literature review. The fungus was characterised by clamp connections, hyphal spicules, and formation of basidiocarps with basidiospores. The phenotypic identification was confirmed by sequencing of the ITS region. To-date, ABPM and pulmonary fungal ball to S. commune have been reported exclusively from Japan and North America respectively. Of the 71 globally reported cases due to S. commune, 45 (63%) were bronchopulmonary, 22 (31%) sinusitis and 4 extrapulmonary. Taken together, cases of bronchopulmonary disease and sinusitis numbered 67 (94%), indicating the respiratory tract as the primary target of disease. Concerning the country-wise distribution, Japan topped the list with 33 cases (46%), followed by Iran - 7 cases (10%), U.S.A. - 6 cases (9%), and a lower prevalence of 1.4-6% for the remaining 12 countries. The preponderance of the disease in Japan may be attributed to its greater awareness vis-à-vis that in other countries rather than to any geographical/climatic factors. We believe that the burden of S. commune-incited disease is currently underestimated, warranting comprehensive prospective studies to determine its prevalence.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Medical Mycology Pulmonary Medicine, Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute, University of Delhi, Delhi, India. dranuradha@hotmail.com
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chowdhary
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Randhawa
authors.forename: S N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Gaur
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kathuria
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Klaassen
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Meis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D005779:Immunodiffusion; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood; D008172:Lung Diseases, Fungal / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D012567:Schizophyllum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D012882:Skin Tests
chemical_list: D007073:Immunoglobulin E