Abstract
An atypical isolate of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis (IFM54648), recovered from the sputum of a Brazilian man, was not detected in immunodiffusion tests for paracoccidioidomycosis and in species-specific PCR for the major antigen 43-kDa glycoprotein coding gene (gp43). The mycological characteristics of the isolate were similar to those of a typical P. brasiliensis. A total of 8 genes were sequenced from IFM54648, and the sequences were compared between the new isolate and other reference isolates and database sequences. We analyzed fragments of the gene sequences that code for gp43, the internal transcribed spacer regions of ribosomal RNA, the D1/D2 domains of the large subunit ribosomal RNA, glucan synthase, chitin synthase, glyoxalase I mRNA, 70-kDa heat-shock protein mRNA and urease. The gene sequences were 98.9–100% identical between IFM54648 and Pb01 (another atypical isolate). When compared to the other typical isolates, the identities were generally lower than 98%. A phylogenetic tree constructed using gp43 sequences showed that IFM54648 clustered with Pb01 at a considerable distance from other isolates. Therefore, this isolate is likely related to Pb01, which has recently been shown to be genetically distinct from other isolates of this species.
Acknowledgements
The present study was supported by the Special Research Fund for Emerging and Re-emerging Infections of the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Labour, Japan.
Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
This paper was first published online on Early Online on 19 February 2009.