Savini Vincenzo, Hendrickx Marijke, Sisti Maurizio, Masciarelli Gioviana, Favaro Marco, Fontana Carla, Pitzurra Lucia, Arzeni Daniela, Astolfi Daniela, Catavitello Chiara, Polilli Ennio, Farina Claudio, Fazii Paolo, D'Antonio Domenico, Stubbe Dirk
Clinical Microbiology and Virology, Spirito Santo Hospital, Pescara, PE, Italy.
Med Mycol. 2013 May;51(4):438-43. doi: 10.3109/13693786.2012.733429. Epub 2012 Nov 21.
A yeast strain was isolated from the sputum sample of a leukaemia patient in the Spirito Santo Hospital of Pescara, Italy. The fungus produced a pigment that formed a reddish halo around colonies, and was identified and deposited as a Metschnikowia spp. (accession number IHEM 25107-GenBank accession number JQ921016) in the BCCM/IHEM collection of biomedical fungi and yeasts (Bruxelles, Belgium). Although the physiology of the strain was close to that of Metschnikowia sinensis, the D1/D2 sequence did not correspond to any previously described Metschnikowia species. Phylogeny of the genus Metschnikowia is complex and requires far more analysis. We present the first non-M. pulcherrima Metschnikowia spp. isolate recovered from a human, and emphasize the role of man as a transient carrier of environmental yeasts, the pathogenicity of which still needs to be defined.
