Cryptococcus neoformans carried by Odontomachus bauri ants
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
;
107(4): 466-469, June 2012. ilus
Article
in English
| LILACS
| ID: lil-626438
ABSTRACT
Cryptococcus neoformans is the most common causative agent of cryptococcosis worldwide. Although this fungus has been isolated from a variety of organic substrates, several studies suggest that hollow trees constitute an important natural niche for C. neoformans. A previously surveyed hollow of a living pink shower tree (Cassia grandis) positive for C. neoformans in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was chosen for further investigation. Odontomachus bauri ants (trap-jaw ants) found inside the hollow were collected for evaluation as possible carriers of Cryptococcus spp. Two out of 10 ants were found to carry phenoloxidase-positive colonies identified as C. neoformans molecular types VNI and VNII. The ants may have acted as a mechanical vector of C. neoformans and possibly contributed to the dispersal of the fungi from one substrate to another. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the association of C. neoformans with ants of the genus Odontomachus.
Full text:
Available
Index:
LILACS (Americas)
Main subject:
Ants
/
Cassia
/
Cryptococcus neoformans
Limits:
Animals
Country/Region as subject:
South America
/
Brazil
Language:
English
Journal:
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
Journal subject:
Tropical Medicine
/
Parasitology
Year:
2012
Type:
Article
/
Project document
Affiliation country:
Brazil
Institution/Affiliation country:
Fiocruz/BR
/
Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana/BR
/
Universidade Severino Sombra/BR
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS