Date: 26 November 2013
Aspergillus terreus Thom. Conidial head of Aspergillus terreus. Conidial heads are compact, columnar and biseriate. Conidiophores are hyaline to slightly yellow and smooth walled.
Copyright:
With thanks to G Kaminski. D Ellis and R Hermanis Mycology Unit, Women’s & Children’s Hospital , Adelaide, South Australia 5006
Notes:
Colonies on CYA 40-50 mm diam, plane, low and velutinous, usually quite dense; mycelium white; conidial production heavy, brown (Dark Blonde to Camel, 5-6D4); reverse pale to dull brown or yellow brown. Colonies on MEA 40-60 mm diam, similar to those on CYA or less dense. Colonies on G25N 18-22 mm diam, plane or irregularly wrinkled, low and sparse; conidial production light, pale brown; brown soluble pigment sometimes produced; reverse brown. No growth at 5°C. Colonies at 37°C growing very rapidly, 50 mm or more diam, of similar appearance to those on CYA at 25°C.Conidiophores borne from surface hyphae, stipes 100-250 μm long, smooth walled; vesicles 15-20 μm diam, fertile over the upper hemisphere, with densely packed, short, narrow metulae and phialides, both 5-8 μm long; conidia spherical, very small, 1.8-2.5 μm diam, smooth walled, at maturity borne in long, well defined columns.Distinctive featuresVelutinous colonies formed at both 25°C and 37°C, uniformly brown, with no other colouration, and minute conidia borne in long columns make Aspergillus terreus a distinctive species.
Images library
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Light microscopic image of hyphae in an aspergilloma (10x magnification)
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Light microscopic image of hyphae in an aspergilloma (400x magnification)
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An aspergilloma (or fungal ball) is a mass of fungus found inside the body, for example inside cavities such as the lungs or sinuses, or as abscesses in organs such as the brain or kidney. They are made up of threadlike fungal strands (hyphae) that are densely packed but only around 1/200 of a millimetre in diameter. A mass of hyphae is called a mycelium.
In this image, a slice through an aspergilloma has been imaged using a transmission electron microscope.
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Aspergillus can punch through the lining of the lungs and invade the blood vessels below, in a process called angioinvasion. It can result in blockage (occlusion) of the blood vessel and damage to the local tissue through lack of oxygen (infarction). In severely immunocompromised patients, fragments can even break off and travel to other organs in the body.
In this image, a tissue section through a blocked blood vessel has been stained with the dyes haematoxylin (purple, binds DNA) and eosin (pink, binds proteins).
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Showing the edge of a colony of aspergillus forming a fungal ball. The fungal hyphae exhibit dichotomous 45 degree angle branching and septae typical of Aspergillus.
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Pt CJ finger clubbing, this patient had chronic cavitary pulmonary aspergillosis, with an aspergilloma since 1988, following an episode of haemoptysis. Currently patient still has symptomatic disease.
Images E,F Blood stained sputum samples from this patient.
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Disseminated, invasive aspergillosis showing dichotomously branching hyphae. Original magnification x300. Stained with Gomori Methenamine Silver (GMS).
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Disseminated, invasive aspergillosis showing dichotomously branching hyphae. Original magnification x150. Stained with Gomori Methenamine Silver (GMS).
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Disseminated, invasive aspergillosis showing dichotomously branching hyphae. Original magnification x50. Stained with Gomori Methenamine Silver (GMS).
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Light microscopical appearance of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis showing vessel occlusion with thrombus and distal infarction (Haematoxylin and eosin, x100)
