Invasive aspergillosis is a leading cause of infectious death in immunosuppressed patients. Here, we adapted a phage display library-based selection to screen and identify binding peptides to the surface of Aspergillus fumigatus conidia and hyphae. We identified a peptide (sequence CGGRLGPFC) that reliably binds to the surface of Aspergillus fumigatus hyphae. Binding was not Aspergillus strain ...

A 23-year-old man who had previously undergone allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) for severe aplastic anemia was diagnosed with invasive laryngeal-tracheobronchial-pulmonary aspergillosis after presenting with a persistent dry cough at six months post-transplantation based on the findings of laryngoscopy and fiberoptic bronchoscopy. A fiberoptic bronchoscope was used...

Evaluating new therapeutic agents for invasive aspergillosis requires animal models that are reproducible among different laboratories. We therefore evaluated a murine model of aerosol infection in two independent laboratories and found a high level of both intra- and interlaboratory reproducibility of survival, fungal burden over time, and the efficacy of liposomal amphotericin B.

Aspergillus fumigatus is a ubiquitous environmental mold and the leading cause of diverse human diseases ranging from allergenic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) to invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA). Experimental investigations of the biology and virulence of this opportunistic pathogen have historically used a few type strains; however, it is increasingly observed with this fungus th...

We report a case of accelerated metabolism of voriconazole during therapy for invasive pulmonary aspergillosis, resulting in subtherapeutic levels. Target voriconazole levels were restored with high dosages of voriconazole (up to 40 mg/kg of body weight/day) and the addition of cimetidine as a cytochrome P450 enzyme inhibitor.

We present a case of 41-year-old patient with invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) in which probe-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (pCLE) imaging of central and distal airways was first performed in vivo. pCLE imaging showed the signs of complete or partial destruction of elastin network of alveolar wall with fibrillar branching fluorescent structures in the zone with typical IPA changes o...

We describe 2 cases of immunocompetent males with acute community-acquired invasive pulmonary aspergillosis developing shortly after spreading bark chippings. One patient with a fatal outcome was initially diagnosed as allergic alveolitis rather than infection and received steroid treatment illustrating the obvious challenges in the differential diagnosis between these disease entities.

The usefulness of a nested PCR assay for detection of Aspergillus sp. DNA was evaluated in 177 bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid specimens. This test was accurate both to diagnose culture-negative BAL fluid specimens from patients with invasive pulmonary aspergillosis and to confirm culture-positive samples. However, it did not differentiate between infection and colonization.

Adequate penetration to the infection/colonization site is crucial to attain optimal efficacy of posaconazole against Aspergillus fumigatus diseases. We evaluated posaconazole exposure in pulmonary epithelial lining fluid (ELF) in a murine model of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. The posaconazole exposure (area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to 24 h postinfusion [AUC...

BACKGROUND Computed tomography (CT) of the chest may be used to identify the halo sign, a macronodule surrounded by a perimeter of ground-glass opacity, which is an early sign of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA). This study analyzed chest CT findings at presentation from a large series of patients with IPA, to assess the prevalence of these imaging findings and to evaluate the clinical ut...