title: Diagnosis ofFusariumInfections: Approaches to Identification by the Clinical Mycology Laboratory.
abstract: Infections caused by the genusFusariumhave emerged over the past decades and range from onychomycosis and keratitis in healthy individuals to deep and disseminated infections with high mortality rates in immune-compromised patients. As antifungal susceptibility can differ between the differentFusariumspecies, identification at species level is recommended. Several clinical observations as hyaline hyphae in tissue, necrotic lesions in the skin and positive blood tests with fungal growth or presence of fungal cell wall components may be the first hints for fusariosis. Many laboratories rely on morphological identification, but especially multi-locus sequencing proves better to discriminate among members of the species complexes involved in human infection. DNA-based diagnostic tools have best discriminatory power when based on translation elongation factor 1-α or the RNA polymerase II second largest subunit. However, assays based on the detection of other fusarial cell compounds such as peptides and cell wall components may also be used for identification. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview and a comparison of the different tools currently available for the diagnosis of fusariosis.
authors: CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors: Anne D
authors: AD
authors: van Diepeningen
authors: CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT Utrecht, The Netherlands ; Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors: Balázs
authors: B
authors: Brankovics
authors: CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors: Jearidienne
authors: J
authors: Iltes
authors: Plant Research International Wageningen UR, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors: Theo A J
authors: TA
authors: van der Lee
authors: Plant Research International Wageningen UR, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors: Cees
authors: C
authors: Waalwijk
keywords: Antifungal susceptibility; Clinical observations; DNA-based diagnostic tools; Fusarium; Multi-locus sequence typing; Peptide-based diagnostic tools