The fungus responsible for “silver leaf disease” has infected a man. Symptoms include an abscess on the trachea, cough, hoarse voice. The patient recovered after two months of antifungals
The leap of species this time comes from the plant world, with a smell which generally infects plants and which has instead infected a man. In fact, for the first time in the history of scientific literature, a particular mushroom, the Chondrosterium purpleresponsible for “Silver Leaf Disease”also called “lead sickness” fatal to plants if not treated quickly, infected a human.
The symptoms and the abscess on the trachea
The case was reported in the specialized scientific journal Medical Mycology Case Reports and concerns a 61 year old manand mycologist Indian who, however, declared that he had never had contact with this specific fungus before the infection, despite the fact that for his work he instead came into contact with decomposing material and other decomposing fungi. The man presented himself at a Calcutta doctor’s office with symptoms such as difficulty swallowing, cough, feeling generally unwell, tiredness, hoarse voice. A computed tomography of the neck revealed the presence of a pus-filled abscess at the level of the trachea. The patient prior to this episode was in perfect health, with a healthy immune system and no chronic disease. The laboratory tests did not identify bacteria but instead filamentous structures caused by fungi, the fungal hyphae, were identified but only with DNA sequencing, thanks to the interest of a research center on fungi of the World Health Organization, it was possible to trace the person responsible for the infection, i.e. the Chondrosterium purple which, as mentioned, causes “lead sickness” in plants, a name that derives from the fact that infected plants become of a characteristic silver colour. Thanks to a treatment with a antifungal and al abscess drainage the disease was eradicated after two months and did not recur again in the following two years.
Rare fungal diseases in humans
Generally the Chondrosterium purple especially affects the fruit treesalthough it can occasionally infect roses, rhododendrons and other ornamental species. The pathology causes a metallic coloration of the leaves which take on a lead-silver color. In humans, fungal diseases are extremely rare because they can hardly take root in the human body due to the immune response, temperature and other factors. However, out of millions of known species, only a few can cause problems for humans, such as athlete’s foot, ringworm, thrush are in fact quite common infections. However, there are some that commonly feed on decaying vegetation, such as
Aspergillus species
, can infect the deepest parts of the human organism. Recently there has been concern about candida auris, a type of fungus that causes candidiasis in humans and sometimes infections which in one of two cases are fatal because the fungus is resistant to antifungal drugs.
April 4, 2023 (change April 4, 2023 | 06:42)
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