Latest Cryptococcosis Stories

The most cost-effective treatment for cryptococcal meningitis (a serious infection of the brain membranes, usually in people with AIDS or other immune system deficiencies) is different to that currently recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), warranting a review of policy, according to the findings of a study published in this week's PLOS Medicine. Researchers from Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, and from the University of Minnesota in the US found that a short (7-day)...

New research conducted by biologists at Texas A&M University suggests that ZOLOFT®, one of the most widely prescribed antidepressants in the world, also packs a potential preventative bonus — potent mechanisms capable of inhibiting deadly fungal infections. The findings are the result of a two-year investigation by Xiaorong Lin, assistant professor of biology, and Matthew S. Sachs, professor of biology, involving sertraline hydrocholoride (ZOLOFT) and its effects on Cryptococcus...

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, July 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New research conducted by biologists at Texas A&M University suggests that ZOLOFT(®), one of the most widely prescribed antidepressants in the world, also packs a potential preventative bonus -- potent mechanisms capable of inhibiting deadly fungal infections. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120502/DC99584LOGO) The findings are the result of a two-year investigation by Xiaorong Lin, assistant...

Most AIDS patients, when diagnosed with a fungal infection known simply as cryptococcosis, are assumed to have an infection with Cryptococcus neoformans, but a recent study from Duke University Medical Center suggests that a sibling species, Cryptococcus gattii, is a more common cause than was previously known. The difference between these strains could make a difference in treatment, clinical course, and outcome, said Joseph Heitman, M.D., Ph.D., senior author of the study and chair of...

New research has shed light on the origins of a fungal infection which is one of the major causes of death from AIDS-related illnesses. The study, published today in the journal PLoS Pathogens, funded by the Wellcome Trust and the BBSRC, shows how the more virulent forms of Cryptococcus neoformans evolved and spread out of Africa and into Asia.Cryptococcus neoformans is a species of often highly aggressive fungi. One particular strain of the fungus "“ known as Cryptococcus neoformas variety...

A study in this week's PLoS Medicine suggests that AIDS patients with cryptococcal meningitis who start HIV therapy are predisposed to immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) "” an exaggerated inflammatory immune response that kills up to one-third of affected people "” if they have biomarkers (biochemicals) in their blood showing evidence of a damaged immune system that is not capable of clearing the fungal infection.David Boulware and Paul Bohjanen from the University of...

New research shows that nearly 1 in 5 cases of infection with the potentially deadly fungus Cryptococcus neoformans are caused by not one but multiple strains of the pathogen. Researchers from the Institut Pasteur and the University of Minnesota Medical School reported their findings May 19 in the inaugural issue of mBioâ„¢, the first online, open-access journal published by the American Society for Microbiology."Koch's postulates are criteria establishing a causal relationship...

SCHAUMBURG, Ill., Aug. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that it has launched fluconazole injection in premix bags. IMS Health estimates that 2008 U.S. sales of fluconazole injection approximated $18 million. Sagent will begin marketing and shipping fluconazole bags immediately. "Our commitment to hospital safety is again exemplified in our new fluconazole offering, the most recent addition to our growing line...

Finding could lead to new therapies or vaccine for Cryptococcus neoformansResearchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered how a deadly microbe evades the human immune system and causes disease.The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), may help scientists develop new therapies or vaccines against infections caused by Cryptococcus neoformans. These fungal infections occur most commonly in those with...