Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Fungal causes of nodular skin lumps in cats found by DNA testing
By Bernhardt, Anne et al.·Published in Medical mycology·2015·Robert Koch Institute, Germany·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Molecular identification of fungal pathogens in nodular skin lesions of cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of cats with nodular skin lumps were found to have various fungal infections that were often misidentified using traditional methods. Researchers tested samples from these cats and discovered that a common fungus called Alternaria was responsible for most of the infections, while others were caused by different fungi like Cryptococcus and Histoplasma. The study highlighted that relying solely on tissue examination could lead to incorrect diagnoses, as many fungal types were identified using molecular techniques that weren't visible through standard histopathology. Accurate identification is crucial for effective treatment, as different fungi respond to different antifungal medications.
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Abstract
In a retrospective study, we investigated 52 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples from cats with histologically confirmed cutaneous and subcutaneous mycoses to determine if the pathogens could be identified by molecular methods. Aim of the study was to obtain a deep understanding of the spectrum of infectious agents, which, as we hypothesized, was not available by histopathology alone. Detection of feline and fungal DNA was achieved in 92.3% and 94.2% of the samples, respectively. Most of the subcutaneous infections in cats were caused by Alternaria spp. (63.5%), followed by Cryptococcus neoformans (7.7%), Histoplasma capsulatum (5.8%), Sporothrix spp. (3.8%), Aspergillus vitricola, Aureobasidium pullulans, Exophiala attenuata, Fusarium oxysporum, Lecythophora cateniformis, Microsporum canis, and Phialophora sp. (1.9% each). The results from molecular identification indicate that correct identifications of the fungal pathogens by histology alone were rarely possible. The spectrum of fungal pathogens identified after DNA extraction from FFPE samples was much broader than that expected by classical histopathology. This was especially noted in alternariosis in that the micromorphological pattern in tissue was misleading and could be confused with that of cryptococcosis. Due to different susceptibilities to antifungal agents, it is important to arrive at a definitive diagnosis, which might be possible by examination of the fungus recovered in culture and/or molecular methods, in addition to the histopathologic techniques.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25550386/