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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The chest x-ray shows a patient who had a left lung transplanted in May 2003 for cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis, which was diagnosed post-transplant as sarcoidosis.
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Gross pathology demonstrating the great pleural thickness and two cavities (upper lobe and superior segment of lower lobe) with fragments of fungal mass.
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Histopathological appearance of a fungus ball. Note a conidial head resulting from fungal exposure to the air.
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Histopathological appearance of a fungus ball caused by Scedosporium apiospermum. The presence of anneloconidia differentiates it from Aspergillus.
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Chronic necrotising aspergillosis. Hyaline hyphal and calcium oxalate crystals obtained by needle aspirate biopsy from a diabetic patient with chronic necrotizing aspergillosis caused by Aspergillus niger (Papanicolaou, x 100).
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Aspergillus niger fungus ball and acute oxalosis. Higher magnification of adjacent replicate section.
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Oxalate crystals within renal tubuli (H&E, phase contrast, x 100). This patient developed acute oxalosis.
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Lung surface. Fungus ball, severe parenchymal fibrosis and pleural thickening.