title: Morphological and physiological comparison of taxa comprising the Sporothrix schenckii complex.
abstract: Based on recent molecular data, it has been suggested that Sporothrix globosa is the main causal agent of sporotrichosis in China. The objective of this study was to compare the morphology, growth characteristics, patterns of carbon source usage, and susceptibility to antifungal agents among Sporothrix strains. A total of 15 clinical strains confirmed to be S. globosa, from three different regions of China, and 11 ex-type strains from the CBS-KNAW biodiversity center were obtained. The elongated conidia of S. pallida, S. variecibatus, S. schenckii, and S. schenckii luriei were clearly different from the subglobose and globose conidia of S. globosa strains. S. schenckii is able to assimilate sucrose, raffinose, and ribitol. Susceptibility profiles of these Sporothrix species were evaluated by measuring minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). Fluconazole, itraconazole, terbinafine, and amphotericin B showed good activity against most S. globosa clinical isolates from China. Potassium iodide also showed a low MIC against S. pallida, while fluconazole showed a high MIC for S. mexicana, S. humicola, S. globosa, S. schenckii, and S. inflata; these strains might be considered tolerant. The species showed differences in susceptibility to antifungal drugs and should therefore be properly identified during diagnosis prior to designing therapeutic strategies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China.
authors.forename: Ming-dan
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China.|Department of Dermatology and Cosmetology, Chongqing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chongqing 400021, China.
authors.forename: Xun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China.
authors.forename: Ting-ting
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: The Laboratory of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, Basic Medical Experiment Teaching Center, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-bang
authors.initials: ZB
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D013175:Sporothrix / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents
keywords: Antifungal susceptibility; Phenotypic characters; Sporothrix globosa