Abstract
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.
Acknowledgements
We warmly thank Dr. Maria Vittoria Lupi, for providing almost all of the literature reviewed; Dr. Massimo Cetrullo and Dr. Marco Scattolini, for their interest in this work and precious aid. Strain IHEM 25107 (GenBank accession number JQ921016) has been deposited into the BCCM/IHEM collection of biomedical fungi and yeasts, Bruxelles, Belgium, where it has been identified as Metschnikowia sp.
Note
‘Stat rosa pristina nomine, nomina nuda tenemus.’ (Umberto Eco, Il Nome della Rosa).
Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and the writing of the paper.
This paper was first published online on Early Online on 21 November 2012.