MICROBIOLOGY – MYCOLOGY LAB 1 – OPPORTUNISTIC MYCOSES SYNCEPHALASTRUM

USTMED ’07 Sec C – AsM; pictures provided by JV.N.

Gray to brown to black fluffy
NEUROSPORA (MONILIA) colony that may fill a Petri dish in
a few days. Similar to Mucor and
White at first but grows rapidly filling Rhizopus spp.
the entire Petri dish in a few days and
becoming a salmon to brown color.
Mycelium may hang from the lid of
the Petri dish.

Broad, clear, nonseptate hyphae,

Clear septate hyphae with large
masses of ovate spores which are air-
dispersed
spores in many slender sac-like
structures (sporangia) adhere to a
swelling on the terminal end of
hypha.

CEPHALOSPORIUM

HORMODENDRUM White to tan to rose-colroed

colony, eventually developing
Green to gray to black colony on White aerial hyphae.
both sides. Often wrinkled and
grows flat

Single celled, clear, elliptical spores

held together in a ball unless
Dark brown septate hyphae bear broken loose
branching chains of elongate to
ovate spores that often contain a
small black dot at the end. Spore
bearing structures look tree-like

NIGROSPORA

Rapid growing, producing

abundant fluffly, aerial hyphae,
gray to black on both sides.
SCOPULARIOPSIS Resembles Mucor or Rhizopus

Powdery, light brown, wrinkled

colony resembling Penicillium spp.
Except for color.

Large, clearly visible jet black

spores.

Resembles Penicillium spp. except

spores are larger and form
unbranched-chains

CHAETOMIUM

Slow growing, flat, white, yellow,

tan or brown colony

PAECILOMYCES

Flat, rapid-growing, tan-colored

colony resembling Aspergillus
spp.

Large, dark, central structure is

perithecium that contains
ascospores (sexually produced)

Similar to Penicillium spp. except

small spores are produced on very
long, slender structures
BOTRYTIS
Soft looking tan to gray colony
Colorless, one celled spores borne
in clumps
STEMPHYLUM
Brown to black, wrinkled fuzzy
colony
Hyphae are brown and strongly
septate: huge multicelled
terminal spores that may either
be smooth or rough
SEPEDONIUM
Fluffy, white colony resembles
Histoplasma capsulatum
Large, rough-walled spores that
resembles Histoplasma capsulatum
GLIOCLADIUM
Flat, rapid-growing colony. White at
first, then developing dark green
central portion
Numerous small spores held
together in a clump. Similar to
Penicillium spp. Except for the
clumping of spores.
ASPERGILLUM (?)
Flat, compact colonies, white at
first then becoming black, green,
bluish or yellow
Small one-celled spores irradiating
out from swollen base (see arrows)
PENICILLIUM
White colony at first but
developing blue to green color
Small, round spores borne in
“brush-like” formations
MUCOR (?)
Cottony, rapid grower. May
completely fill a Petri dish in 3 to
5 days. Brown to gray.
Clear, nonseptate hyphae. Spores
borne inside large spherical
structures called sporangia.
Similar to Rhizopus spp. but
lacking rhizoids.
RHIZOPUS
Gray to brown to black colony
filling a Petri dish in 2 to 3 days.
Similar to Mucor spp.
Similar to Mucor spp. except
foot-like structures (rhizoids)
at base of spore bearing
hyphae (see arrows). Spores in
sporangium clear, coenocytic
hyphae
FUSARIUM
Fast-growing colony. At first,
white and cottony but develping
rose to red color on both sides
Largest spores are sickle-shaped
and may contain several cells.
Small spores with one to two cells
have more rounded ends.
GEOTRICHIUM
White to tan, flat or fluffy, rapid-
growing fungus
Note hyphae breaking into
arthrospores. May be confused
with Coccidioides immitis.
ALTERNARIA
Rapid-growing colonies, grayish to
black to brown; underside jet
black
Large, hand grenade-shaped
spores with both longitudinal
and transverse cross walls.
Borne singly or in chains.
Septate, dematiaceous fungi.
CURVALARIA
Dark brown to black colony on
both sides ragged in appearance.
Large, bent spores with 3 to 5
cells. Similar to
Helminthosporium spp. Brown,
septate hyphae.
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TRICHODERMA SPECIES
Classification: Contaminants
Mounting fluid used: Lactophenol Cotton Blue (LPCB)
TRITRACHIUM SPECIES
Classification: Contaminants
Mounting fluid used: LPCB
DRESCHLERA SPECIES
Classification: Contaminants
Mounting fluid used: LPCB
* MALASSEZIA FURFUR
KOH Smear – Skin scrapings
Positive for Short hyphal elements with oval bodies
(Malassezia furfur)
TEASE MOUNT TECHNIQUE
For the tease mount, a fragment
of the colony collected using a
wire or loop is transferred to a
glass microscope slide. A drop of
lactophenol cotton blue is then
added, and the specimen is
teased using dissecting needles
as shown in this figure. The
teasing of the specimen needs to
be done carefully. Isolated
elements can be observed, while
at the same time preserving the
integrity of the over-all structure of the microorganism.
ADHESIVE TAPE TECHNIQUE
A piece of transparent
adhesive tape is used to
collect the specimen by
pressing the adhesive slide
against the surface of the
fungal colony. Aerial elements
will adhere to the tape, which
is subsequently placed on a
microscopic slide containing a
drop of lactophenol cotton
blue. This technique is good
for preserving the original relationship between spores and aerial hyphae.
However, it usually cannot be applied to mold specimens that have few
aerial mycelia or to yeast with a moist consistency.