Keratitis caused by the recently described new species Aspergillus brasiliensis: two case reports

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Human infections caused by <it>Aspergillus brasiliensis </it>have not yet been reported. We describe the first two known cases of fungal keratitis caused by <it>Aspergillus brasiliensis</it>.</p> <p>Case presentations</p> <p>A 49-year-old Indian Tamil woman agricultural worker came with pain and defective vision in the right eye for one month. Meanwhile, a 35-year-old Indian Tamil woman presented with a history of a corneal ulcer involving the left eye for 15 days. The fungal strains isolated from these two cases were originally suspected to belong to <it>Aspergillus </it>section <it>Nigri </it>based on macro- and micromorphological characteristics. Molecular identification revealed that both isolates represent <it>A. brasiliensis</it>.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The two <it>A. brasiliensis </it>strains examined in this study were part of six keratitis isolates from <it>Aspergillus </it>section <it>Nigri</it>, suggesting that this recently described species may be responsible for a significant proportion of corneal infections caused by black Aspergilli. The presented cases also indicate that significant differences may occur between the severities of keratitis caused by individual isolates of <it>A. brasiliensis</it>.</p

Case of Keratitis Caused by Aspergillus tamarii▿

We report a case of Aspergillus tamarii keratitis. Ocular injury was known to be a predisposing factor. Topical natamycin and econazole treatment and subsequent systemic ketoconazole treatment proved effective. The isolate was identified by morphological characteristics and sequence analysis as A. tamarii, a member of Aspergillus section Flavi not hitherto reported from keratomycosis

Antiamoebic Susceptibility in Acanthamoeba Keratitis: Comparison of Isolates From South India and Northern California.

PURPOSE: Outcomes of Acanthamoeba keratitis are often worse in India than in the United States. The goal of this study was to determine whether antiamoebic susceptibility patterns were different when comparing Acanthamoeba isolates from India with those of the United States. METHODS: Acanthamoeba isolates were obtained from corneal scrapings of 43 patients with infectious keratitis seen at the Francis I. Proctor Foundation (N = 23) and Aravind Eye Hospital (N = 20) from 2008 through 2012 and plated on growth media. A previously described minimum cysticidal concentration (MCC) assay was performed by a single laboratory technician to assess susceptibility to 5 antiamoebic agents for all isolates. Testing was conducted in triplicate, with the median MCC chosen for analyses. RESULTS: The MCC (μg/mL) of polyhexamethylene biguanide was 6.25 [IQR 5.47-12.5] for Aravind isolates and 6.25 [IQR 6.25-9.375] for Proctor isolates ( P = 0.75), corresponding values were 6.25 [IQR 3.125-6.25] and 3.125 [IQR 3.125-9.375] for chlorhexidine ( P = 0.81), 2500 [IQR 2500-5000] and 5000 [IQR 1250-20,000] for voriconazole ( P = 0.25), 15.6 [IQR 15.6-39.0625] and 15.6 [IQR 15.6-31.25] for hexamidine ( P = 0.92), and 15.6 [IQR 7.81-15.6] and 15.6 [IQR 7.81-31.25] for propamidine ( P = 0.42). CONCLUSIONS: This study found no statistically significant differences in antiamoebic susceptibility of Indian versus US samples from Acanthamoeba keratitis clinical isolates. These findings suggest that differences in antiamoebic susceptibility are likely not responsible for differential outcomes in Acanthamoeba keratitis between the 2 locations

Mycotic Keratitis Due to Aspergillus nomius▿

We report the first known case of fungal keratitis caused by Aspergillus nomius. Ocular injury was known as a predisposing factor. The patient was treated with natamycin and econazole eye drops, itraconazole eye ointment, and oral ketoconazole. A therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty was performed 16 days after presentation. A sequence-based approach was used to assign the isolate to a species