Aspergillus niger - Doctor Fungus

Van Tieghem, 1867

Macroscopic morphology

Colonies on potato dextrose agar at 25°C are initially white, quickly becoming black with conidial production. Reverse is pale yellow and growth may produce radial fissures in the agar.

Microscopic morphology

Hyphae are septate and hyaline. Conidial heads are radiate initially, splitting into columns at maturity. The species is biseriate (vesicles produces sterile cells known as metulae that support the conidiogenous phialides). Conidiophores are long (400-3000 µm), smooth, and hyaline, becoming darker at the apex and terminating in a globose vesicle (30-75 µm in diameter). Metulae and phialides cover the entire vesicle. Conidia are brown to black, very rough, globose, and measure 4-5 µm in diameter [2202], [531].

Special notes

Organism is a common secondary invader following bacterial otitis [2153]. May also cause pulmonary disease in immunocompromised patients and the production of oxalate crystals in clinical specimens [1611].

FTL* in vitro susceptibility data

AMB	CAS	ITRA	VORI	POSA	KETO	TERB	5FC	MICA	ANID
0.125 µg/ml=2	0.03 µg/ml=16	0.03 µg/ml=1	0.06 µg/ml=1	0.03 µg/ml=1	2.0 µg/ml=1	0.015 µg/ml=1	8 µg/ml=2	?0.03 µg/ml=1	?0.03 µg/ml=1
0.25 µg/ml=8	0.125 µg/ml=31	0.125 µg/ml=3	0.125 µg/ml=3	0.06 µg/ml=3	4.0 µg/ml=5	0.03 µg/ml=4	16 µg/ml=1
0.5 µg/ml=47	0.25 µg/ml=8	0.25 µg/ml=6	0.25 µg/ml=4	0.125 µg/ml=6	8.0 µg/ml=4	0.06 µg/ml=1	64 µg/ml=2
1.0 µg/ml=35	0.5 µg/ml=1	0.5 µg/ml=23	0.5 µg/ml=38	0.25 µg/ml=6	16 µg/ml=1	0.125 µg/ml=3	>64 µg/ml=3
16 µg/ml=1		1.0 µg/ml=29	1.0 µg/ml=31
		2.0 µg/ml=5	2.0 µg/ml=4
		4.0 µg/ml=5
		8.0 µg/ml=2

Drug/N	AMB/93	CAS/56	ITRA/74	VORI/81	POSA/16
MIC Range	0.125-16	0.03-0.5	0.03-1.0	0.125-2.0	0.06-0.25
MIC₅₀	0.5	0.125	0.5	0.5	0.125
MIC₉₀	1.0	0.25	1.0	1.0	0.25

* Fungus Testing Laboratory unpublished data (NCCLS M38-A)

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