Insights into Persian Gulf Beach Sand Mycobiomes: Promises and Challenges in Fungal Diversity.

Beach Sand Mycobiome is currently among the most important health challenges for viticulture in the world. Remarkably, the study of fungal communities in coastal beach sand and recreational waters remains underexplored despite their potential implications for human health. This research aimed to assess the prevalence of fungal species and the antifungal susceptibility profiles of fungi recovered from the beaches of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman.

Prevalence of in Patients Referred to Bushehr Medical Centers and Its Relationship with Urticaria.

Objective: Recent studies determined that the amoeboid form of acts as a factor in stimulating the host's immune responses and ultimately results in urticaria and other skin disorders. The present study was conducted in order to determine the prevalence of in people referred to Bushehr city health centers and the relationship of this parasite with urticaria.

Methods: Fecal samples were collected from 180 males and females referred to Bushehr health centers and a questionnaire containing demographic information was completed for each person.

Screening Candida auris through a multiplex stepwise PCR algorithm directly from clinical samples of patients suspected of otomycosis in south of Iran; Detection of five cases.

Background: Otomycosis is an infection of the external auditory canal caused by molds and yeasts with descending frequency. Laboratory diagnosis is usually confirmed by microscopy and culture. However, they are not specific enough to reliably differentiate the causative agents, especially for rare pathogens such as Candida auris.

An Autochthonous Susceptible Clade I Otomycosis Case in Iran.

is a newly emerging multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen considered to be a serious global health threat. Due to diagnostic challenges, there is no precise estimate for the prevalence rate of this pathogen in Iran. Since 2019, only six culture-proven cases have been reported from Iran, of which, five belonged to clade V and one to clade I.

Expression analysis of circulating miR-22, miR-122, miR-217 and miR-367 as promising biomarkers of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Background: The role of serum-based biomarkers such as microRNAs in cancer diagnosis has been extensively established. This study aimed to determine the expression levels of bioinformatically selected miRNAs and whether they can be used as biomarkers or a new therapeutic target in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

Materials And Methods: The expression levels of serum miR-22, miR-122, miR-217, and miR-367 in 21 ALL patients and 21 healthy controls were measured using quantitative real-time PCR.

Mycetoma due to in a diabetic patient: Case report and literature review.

Diabetes mellitus patients are prone to cutaneous and subcutaneous fungal infections due to pathogenic fungi, including dermatophytes, Mucorales, , , and species. Here, we report a case of mycetoma confirmed by isolation and molecular identification. The case was a 38-year-old male farmer with a seven-year history of type 2 diabetes mellitus, living in Khuzestan, southwest of Iran.

Fatal invasive aspergillosis in a child with chronic granulomatous disease.

Patients with chronic granulomatous disease, a primary immunodeficiency, experience granulomatous complications and recurrent life-threatening opportunistic bacterial and fungal infections. In this article, we report on a case of invasive aspergillosis in an eight-year-old boy with chronic granulomatous disease, who presented with pleural effusion and pneumonia, cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, and unusual skin lesions caused by . Antifungal treatment with itraconazole and other antifungal agents, along with interferon-γ, was ineffective and the patient eventually died from cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, and intracerebral haemorrhage following increased intracranial pressure after one month.

Isolation and molecular characterization of clinical and environmental dematiaceous fungi and relatives from Iran.

Background And Purpose: The frequency and genetic diversity of black fungi in environmental and clinical settings have not been fully studied in Iran. This study aimed to identify and evaluate intra- and inter-species DNA sequence variation and also understand the phylogenetic relationships of melanized fungi and relatives isolated from different geographical regions of Iran.

Materials And Methods: In total, 111 clinical and environmental strains of dematiaceous fungi were isolated, and their internal transcribed spacer ribosomal DNA (rDNA) regions were sequenced and analyzed.

Otomycosis in the South of Iran with a High Prevalence of Tympanic Membrane Perforation: A Hospital-Based Study.

Introduction: Otomycosis is a superficial infection of the external ear caused by fungal pathogens. The genera Aspergillus and Candida are considered the main fungal causative agents, with the predominance of Aspergillus section Nigri. The present study aimed to evaluate the clinical symptoms of patients with otomycosis and predisposing factors and to identify fungal etiological agents using molecular approaches.

Differentiation of complex species isolated from invasive and non-invasive infections using gene size polymorphism.

Background And Purpose: Taxonomy of is controversial and has changed due to the investigation of the novel species. and are new members of the complex that are currently gaining both clinical and epidemiologic significance. This study aimed to report the prevalence of among the strains isolated from patients using hyphal wall protein 1 () gene size polymorphism.

Phenotypic features and molecular study of airborne species isolated in the northern part of the Persian Gulf, Bushehr, Iran.

Background And Purpose: The main environmental saprobes, such as , play an essential role in natural ecosystems as economically, ecologically, and medically important microorganisms. Biodiversity of this genus has not been described in Bushehr city, Iran. The present study is based on air biodiversity of species on culture-dependent approach and culture-independent technique using partial b-tubulin sequences.

Diversity of Geophilic Dermatophytes Species in the Soils of Iran; The Significant Preponderance of .

A molecular epidemiology study was conducted between 2016 and 2017 by a network of collaborators from 12 provinces in the Islamic Republic of Iran. A total of 1484 soil samples from different habitats were screened for the presence of dermatophytes by using the hair baiting technique. The primary identification of isolates was carried out by amplification and I restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of the internal transcribed spacers regions of ribosomal DNA (ITS-rDNA).

Familial Cases of Trichophyton benhamiae Infection Transmitted from a Guinea Pig in Iran.

Trichophyton benhamiae is a zoophilic dermatophyte mainly transmitted to humans from guinea pigs. This zoophilic species can also cause dermatophytosis as reported by human contact with other animals, such as rabbit, cat, and fox. Here, we report the tinea faciei and tinea corporis cases: a 12-year-old girl and her 53-year-old father, with no history of immunodeficiency and underlying disease, caused by T.

DNA topoisomerase 2 gene polymorphism in dermatophytes.

Background: Dermatophytes are a group of keratinophilic fungi of medical importance. Despite a relatively long history of molecular taxonomic studies, there is still a need for information on genetic polymorphism in wider variety of genomic loci.

Objectives: Our goal was to study partial DNA topoisomerase 2 gene (TOP2) polymorphism in dermatophytes.

: nucleotide sequence analysis and antifungal susceptibility testing of 40 clinical isolates.

is an anthropophilic dermatophyte species, which is one of the common causative agents of dermatophytosis in different parts of the world. The aim of the present investigation was to evaluate the genetic diversity of strains isolated from different parts of Iran and to define the susceptibility profiles of seven antifungal drugs against these clinical isolates. Forty clinical strains of isolated from 40 patients with dermatophytosis were subjected to DNA extraction and PCR amplification of the ITS rDNA region using universal primers ITS1 and ITS4.

In vitro activities of 15 antifungal drugs against a large collection of clinical isolates of Microsporum canis.

Background: Microsporum canis is a zoophilic species, found to be the most frequently isolated species in animals. M. canis causes sporadic outbreaks of infections in humans, such as the one that occurred in Canada, where more than 1000 human cases were detected over an 8-year period.

Identification of clinical dermatophyte isolates obtained from Iran by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Background And Purpose: Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) is widely used to discriminate among pathogenic microorganisms in clinical laboratories. The aim of this study was to assess the utility of MALDI-TOF MS in the routine identification of clinical dermatophyte isolates obtained from various geographical regions of Iran.

Materials And Methods: A total of 94 isolates, including (n=44), (n=40), (n=4), (n=4), and (=1), were analyzed in this study.

Clinical and microbial epidemiology of otomycosis in the city of Yasuj, southwest Iran, revealing Aspergillus tubingensis as the dominant causative agent.

Purpose: Otomycosis is a mycotic infection of the external auditory canal and can be caused by a wide range of fungal species. In this study, we aimed to identify fungal isolates from patients suspected of otomycosis.

Methodology: External ear canal samples were taken from patients referred to the outpatient department of Shahid-Mofatteh Clinic in the city of Yasuj, Iran, and examined by direct microscopy and culture.

Candida africana in recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) patients: frequency and phenotypic and genotypic characteristics.

Purpose: Up to 75 % of all women develop vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), with symptoms such as vulvar erythema, pruritus and abnormal vaginal discharge. Despite the global distribution of Candida africana, its role in recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) is still unclear and requires further investigation. Here, we report on the frequency of C.

Characterization of beta-tubulin DNA sequences within complex.

Background And Purpose: is a common cause of candidemia in children and patients with onco-hematological diseases, septic arthritis, peritonitis, vaginitis, and nail and skin infections. Regarding this, the present study was condcuted to evaluate intra- and inter-species variation within beta-tubulin DNA sequence of complex in order to establish the utilization of this gene in the identification and phylogenetic analysis of the species.

Materials And Methods: A total of 23 isolates representing three different species of complex were used in this study, all of which were identifed by ITS-sequencing.

Assessment of a pan-dermatophyte nested-PCR compared with conventional methods for direct detection and identification of dermatophytosis agents in animals.

Conventional direct microscopy with potassium hydroxide (KOH) and culture were found to lack the ability to establish a fast and specific diagnosis of dermatophytosis. A pan-dermatophyte nested-PCR assay was developed using a novel primer pair targeting the translation elongation factor 1-α (Tef-1α) sequences for direct detection and identification of most veterinary relevant dermatophytes in animal samples suspected to dermatophytosis. A total of 140 animal skin and hair samples were subjected to direct microscopy, culture, and ITS-RFLP/ITS-sequencing of culture isolates for the detection and identification of dermatophytosis agents.

Antifungal Activity of Novel Triazole Efinaconazole and Five Comparators against Dermatophyte Isolates.

The objective of this study was to assess the activity of the novel triazole antifungal drug, efinaconazole, and five comparators (luliconazole, lanoconazole, terbinafine, itraconazole, and fluconazole) against a large collection of and clinical isolates. The geometric mean MICs were the lowest for luliconazole (0.0005 μg/ml), followed by lanoconazole (0.

Activities of Luliconazole, Lanoconazole, and Efinaconazole Compared with Those of Five Antifungal Drugs against Melanized Fungi and Relatives.

The activities of novel azoles compared to those of five antifungal drugs against clinical ( = 28) and environmental ( = 102) isolates of black mold and melanized yeast were determined. Luliconazole and lanoconazole had the lowest geometric mean MICs, followed by efinaconazole, against tested isolates compared to the other drugs. Therefore, it appears that these new imidazole and triazole drugs are promising candidates for the treatment of infections due to melanized fungi and their relatives.