Journal
FUNGAL GENETICS AND BIOLOGY
Volume 34, Issue 3, Pages 167-175Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1006/fgbi.2001.1304
Keywords
hyphae; invasive growth; oomycetes; pathogenesis; pythiosis insidiosi; skin biomechanics
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The relative significance of mechanical penetration versus the action of substrate-degrading enzymes during solid tissue invasion has not been established for any fungal disease. Pythium insidiosum is an oomycete fungus (or stramenopile) that causes a rare, but potentially lethal infection in humans and other mammalian hosts. Experiments with miniature strain gauges showed that single hyphal apices of this pathogen exert forces of up to 6.9 muN, corresponding to maximum pressures of 0.3 muN mum(-2) or MPa. Samples of cutaneous and subcutaneous tissue from fresh human cadavers displayed a mean strength (resistance to needle puncture) of 24 muN mum(-2), and a mean pressure of 30 muN mum(-2) was necessary to penetrate skin strips from slaughtered horses. These experiments demonstrate that P. insidiosum does not exert sufficient pressure to penetrate undamaged skin by mechanics alone, but must effect a decisive reduction in tissue strength by proteinase secretion. (C) 2001 Academic Press.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available