Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Clinical Pathology logoLink to Journal of Clinical Pathology
. 1985 Sep;38(9):1039–1044. doi: 10.1136/jcp.38.9.1039

Disseminated zygomycosis associated with erythroleukaemia: confirmation by lectin stains.

E W Benbow, I W Delamore, R W Stoddart, H Reid
PMCID: PMC499355  PMID: 2413080

Abstract

Zygomycosis is not often diagnosed in the United Kingdom, and so the possible importance of the findings in a patient with disseminated zygomycosis who had been treated with chemotherapy for erythroleukaemia was not appreciated until histological examination of specimens obtained at necropsy provided a presumptive diagnosis. No attempt had therefore been made to identify the organism by culture, and lectin binding methods were used to try to compensate for this. The characteristics of the hyphae on staining with lectins were similar to those previously shown in Rhizopus oryzae and were unlike those of a wide range of other hyphal fungi. Although definite speciation of the fungus was not achieved, these findings confirm that this was a case of zygomycosis and would seem to represent the first such reported confirmation in the absence of culture.

Full text

PDF
1039

Images in this article

1040Image
on p.1040
1041Image
on p.1041
1041Image
on p.1041
1041Image
on p.1041
1042Image
on p.1042
1043Image
on p.1043

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BAKER R. D. Leukopenia and therapy in leukemia as factors predisposing to fatal mycoses. Mucormycosis, aspergillosis, and cryptococcosis. Am J Clin Pathol. 1962 Apr;37:358–373. doi: 10.1093/ajcp/37.4.358. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BAKER R. D. Mucormycosis; a new disease? J Am Med Assoc. 1957 Mar 9;163(10):805–808. doi: 10.1001/jama.1957.02970450007003. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bottone E. J., Weitzman I., Hanna B. A. Rhizopus rhizopodiformis: emerging etiological agent of mucormycosis. J Clin Microbiol. 1979 Apr;9(4):530–537. doi: 10.1128/jcm.9.4.530-537.1979. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Chinn R. Y., Diamond R. D. Generation of chemotactic factors by Rhizopus oryzae in the presence and absence of serum: relationship to hyphal damage mediated by human neutrophils and effects of hyperglycemia and ketoacidosis. Infect Immun. 1982 Dec;38(3):1123–1129. doi: 10.1128/iai.38.3.1123-1129.1982. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Comstock G. W., Palmer C. E., Stone R. W., Goodman N. L. Fungi in the sputum of normal men. Mycopathol Mycol Appl. 1974 Oct 15;54(1):55–62. doi: 10.1007/BF02055973. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. England A. C., 3rd, Weinstein M., Ellner J. J., Ajello L. Two cases of rhinocerebral zygomycosis (mucormycosis) with common epidemiologic and environmental features. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1981 Oct;124(4):497–498. doi: 10.1164/arrd.1981.124.4.497. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gartenberg G., Bottone E. J., Keusch G. T., Weitzman I. Hospital-acquired mucormycosis (Rhizopus rhizopodiformis) of skin and subcutaneous tissue: epidemiology, mycology and treatment. N Engl J Med. 1978 Nov 16;299(20):1115–1118. doi: 10.1056/NEJM197811162992007. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Helenglass G., Elliott J. A., Lucie N. P. An unusual presentation of opportunistic mucormycosis. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1981 Jan 10;282(6258):108–109. doi: 10.1136/bmj.282.6258.108-a. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Hotchi M., Okada M., Nasu T. Present state of fungal infections in autopsy cases in Japan. Am J Clin Pathol. 1980 Oct;74(4):410–416. doi: 10.1093/ajcp/74.4.410. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Hsu S. M., Raine L., Fanger H. The use of antiavidin antibody and avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex in immunoperoxidase technics. Am J Clin Pathol. 1981 Jun;75(6):816–821. doi: 10.1093/ajcp/75.6.816. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Hsu S. M., Raine L. Versatility of biotin-labeled lectins and avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex for localization of carbohydrate in tissue sections. J Histochem Cytochem. 1982 Feb;30(2):157–161. doi: 10.1177/30.2.7037937. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. KURREIN F. Cerebral mucormycosis. J Clin Pathol. 1954 May;7(2):141–144. doi: 10.1136/jcp.7.2.141. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Krick J. A., Remington J. S. Opportunistic invasive fungal infections in patients with leukaemia lymphoma. Clin Haematol. 1976 Jun;5(2):249–310. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. LANDAU J. W., NEWCOMER V. D. Acute cerebral phycomycosis (mucormycosis). Report of a pediatric patient successfully treated with amphotericin B and cycloheximide and review of the pertinent literature. J Pediatr. 1962 Sep;61:363–385. doi: 10.1016/s0022-3476(62)80368-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Marchevsky A. M., Bottone E. J., Geller S. A., Giger D. K. The changing spectrum of disease, etiology, and diagnosis of mucormycosis. Hum Pathol. 1980 Sep;11(5):457–464. doi: 10.1016/s0046-8177(80)80054-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. McNulty J. S. Rhinocerebral mucormycosis: predisposing factors. Laryngoscope. 1982 Oct;92(10 Pt 1):1140–1143. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Meyer R. D., Rosen P., Armstrong D. Phycomycosis complicating leukemia and lymphoma. Ann Intern Med. 1972 Dec;77(6):871–879. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-77-6-871. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Monga D. P., Mohapatra L. N. A compilation of published reports of mycoses in animals in India. Mycopathologia. 1980 Aug 29;72(1):3–11. doi: 10.1007/BF00443044. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Mucormycosis. Ann Intern Med. 1980 Jul;93(1):93–108. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-93-1-93. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Myskowski P. L., Brown A. E., Dinsmore R., Kiehn T., Edwards F., Wong B., Safai B., Armstrong D. Mucormycosis following bone marrow transplantation. J Am Acad Dermatol. 1983 Jul;9(1):111–115. doi: 10.1016/s0190-9622(83)70115-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. NOBLE W. C., CLAYTON Y. M. FUNGI IN THE AIR OF HOSPITAL WARDS. J Gen Microbiol. 1963 Sep;32:397–402. doi: 10.1099/00221287-32-3-397. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Pillsbury H. C., Fischer N. D. Rhinocerebral mucormycosis. Arch Otolaryngol. 1977 Oct;103(10):600–604. doi: 10.1001/archotol.1977.00780270068011. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Rosenberg S. W., Lepley J. B. Mucormycosis in leukemia. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol. 1982 Jul;54(1):26–32. doi: 10.1016/0030-4220(82)90413-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. STRAATSMA B. R., ZIMMERMAN L. E., GASS J. D. Phycomycosis. A clinicopathologic study of fifty-one cases. Lab Invest. 1962 Nov;11:963–985. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Shivpuri D. N., Agarwal M. K. Studies on the allergenic fungal spores of the Delhi, India, metropolitan area. Clinical aspects. J Allergy. 1969 Oct;44(4):204–213. doi: 10.1016/0021-8707(69)90087-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Stoddart R. W., Herbertson B. M. The use of fluorescein-labelled lectins in the detection and identification of fungi pathogenic for man: a preliminary study. J Med Microbiol. 1978 Aug;11(3):315–324. doi: 10.1099/00222615-11-3-315. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Waldorf A. R., Peter L., Polak A. Mucormycotic infection in mice following prolonged incubation of spores in vivo and the role of spore agglutinating antibodies on spore germination. Sabouraudia. 1984;22(2):101–108. doi: 10.1080/00362178485380171. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. del Real Mora O., Zamora Quezada J., Abud Mendoza C., Sada Díaz E., Ponce de León S., Ruiz-Palacios G. Mucormicosis. Informe de 14 casos. Rev Invest Clin. 1983 Jul-Sep;35(3):237–240. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Pathology are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES