Date: 26 November 2013
Aspergillus terreus Thom. Conidial head of Aspergillus terreus. Conidial heads are compact, columnar and biseriate. Conidiophores are hyaline to slightly yellow and smooth walled.
Copyright:
With thanks to G Kaminski. D Ellis and R Hermanis Mycology Unit, Women’s & Children’s Hospital , Adelaide, South Australia 5006
Notes:
Colonies on CYA 40-50 mm diam, plane, low and velutinous, usually quite dense; mycelium white; conidial production heavy, brown (Dark Blonde to Camel, 5-6D4); reverse pale to dull brown or yellow brown. Colonies on MEA 40-60 mm diam, similar to those on CYA or less dense. Colonies on G25N 18-22 mm diam, plane or irregularly wrinkled, low and sparse; conidial production light, pale brown; brown soluble pigment sometimes produced; reverse brown. No growth at 5°C. Colonies at 37°C growing very rapidly, 50 mm or more diam, of similar appearance to those on CYA at 25°C.Conidiophores borne from surface hyphae, stipes 100-250 μm long, smooth walled; vesicles 15-20 μm diam, fertile over the upper hemisphere, with densely packed, short, narrow metulae and phialides, both 5-8 μm long; conidia spherical, very small, 1.8-2.5 μm diam, smooth walled, at maturity borne in long, well defined columns.Distinctive featuresVelutinous colonies formed at both 25°C and 37°C, uniformly brown, with no other colouration, and minute conidia borne in long columns make Aspergillus terreus a distinctive species.
Images library
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Left= an agar air plate exposed for 2 minutes after the barley had been turned. showing numerous colonies of the fungus following incubation at 26C on 2% malt agar.Right= A sputum sample taken from a maltworker after exposure showing many fungal colonies when cultured on agar. His commensal yeast flora is seen towards the right base as cream/white colonies.
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growing on contaminated barley malt. The deep blue-green heads made up of chains of conidia are seen on the left. On the right, conidiophores from which conidial chains are developed show typical clavate heads. Stain- Cotton blue in Lactophenol.
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Sections of colonised alveoli
On the left, the conidiophores sporulate freely, on the right they are seen to cease development at the phialide stage. Carbon deposits are clearly seen here.A=alveolus, As=alveolar septum, C=conidiophore, P=phialide
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The growth isolated from the aspergilloma in the presence of living cells of the three bacterial species in culture.The most marked inhibition occurred with Pseudomonas aeruginosa(P) and Haemophilus influenzae(H) and to a much lesser extent with Staphylococcus aureus(S). C=control. Inhibitory factors were components of the bacterial slime layers.
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aspergilloma removed from the lung cavity seen in section.Staining was with methenamine/silver and light green. The structure shows zonation probably due to variations in the growth rate of mycelium(deep brown). A mucus layer(stained green) containing cell debris and bacteria is seen shrouding the fungus. Bacterial genera were Staphylococcus, Haemophilus and Pseudodomonas.
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Plugs cultured on agarA young colony of the fungus(AF) has a central patch of sporulation and is surrounded by colonies of bacteria and yeasts.
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A part of the mycelium in a stained sputum plug showing the dichotomously branched hyphae of Aspergillus fumigatus.
