Dear Members,
Currently I'am working on molecular epidemiology of Cryptococcus gattii, an important human pathogen. this yeast causes life-threatening infection of the pulmonary and central nervous systems in hosts with normal immunity and traditionally has been considered to be restricted geographically to tropical and subtropical climates.
To date, for reasons that are not yet fully understood, C. gattii has acquired the ability to adapt to new climatic and geographic conditions, such as those existing in Canada, where this yeast has unexpectedly emerged as a primary pathogen causing, since 1999, infections mostly in immunocompetent individuals. Moreover, during the past years, several clinical autochthonous cases have also been described of patients who live in Mediterranean countries showing that this fungus is more widespread than was previously thought. However no environmental studies have been conducted to evaluate the diffusion of this yeast in these geographical areas.
To this day, after twenty years of investigations our laboratory isolated this fungus in Reggio Calabria, southern Italy (from Eucalyptus camaldulensis trees) that emphasize the observed global expansion of this pathogenic yeast.
I therefore invite all those who live in the Mediterranean area to start a collaboration with my laboratory to perform an important environmental study about the spread of this yeast.
I believe that this effort to determine the ecology and population dynamics of C. gattii in Europe might detect a different reality than that currently known regarding the epidemiology of this species.
You can simply participate in the study by sending me the environmental samples (Eucalyptus camaldulensis debris, including leaves and barks) from your country or if you are able you can recover this yeast from these samples in your lab by using conventional phenotypic methods and than share the results.
I hope many of you will participate in this study.
Anyone interested can contact me at [email protected] for further details.
I think it will be a wonderful (and productive) experience working with you.
Best Regards
Orazio Romeo
Dear Member,
"First ResearchGate Project on environmental diffusion of Cryptococcus gattii: an important yeast pathogen".
To date several european researchers joined the project on Environmental diffusion of Cryptococcus gattii. Many environmental samples (Eucaliptus debris) will send to my laboratory for analysis in September 2010.
Now I looking for environmental samples from France, Portugal, Croatia, Tunisia, Libya and Morocco therefore I invite all researcher from these countries to joined the project.
However also other members from mediterranean area will be welcome.
For further details please do not hesitate to contact me ([email protected]).
Thank you very much.
Orazio
The ResearchGate project on environmental diffusion of Cryptococcus gattii in the Mediterranean area was started by our laboratory. Currently, we are examining environmental samples from Turkey send us by Dr. Emre Gençay.
We're still looking for samples from France, Portugal, Morrocco and Tunisia. Anyone interested can start sending samples to my laboratory.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Regards
Orazio Romeo
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Biological Science
- Bioscience