Paecilomyces
Characteristics: Type I and Type III allergy symptoms. Rarely considered a pathogen, it has been known to cause infections in immunocompromised patients. It is considered toxigenic.
Description: It is often found in soil, decaying plant material, composting processes, legumes, cottonseed, and some species of parasitic insects. It generally has a ocher or lilac coloration. It is disseminated as a dry spore by the wind. For indoor growth this fungus has been found on common items such as jute fibers, paper, PVC, timber(oak wood), optical lenses, leather, photographic paper, cigar tobacco, harvested grapes, bottled fruit, and fruit juice undergoing pasteurization. Paecilomyces are thermophylic and can grow in temperatures from 37°C up to 55°C. As an allergen, it has been known to cause both Type I allergy symptoms including hay fever and asthma as well as Type III symptoms including hypersensitivity pneumonitis and humidifier lung. Rarely considered a pathogen, it has been known to cause myotic keratitis in conjunction with corneal implants, nosocomial infections, endocarditis, and infactions in immunocompromised patients. As a toxigenic agent, it produces paecilotoxins, byssochlamic acid, variotin, ferrirubin, viriditoxin, indole-3-acetic acid, fusigen and patulin.
Penicillium/Aspergillus Types
Characteristics: Type I and Type III allergen. One species considered pathogenic. Produces toxins.
Description: It is often found in soil, decaying plant debris, compost piles, and rotting fruit with a blue, green, or white coloration. It is disseminated as a dry spore by wind and insects. Indoor growth is common and is often found in house dust. Generally it is found in water damaged buildings on wallpaper, wallpaper glue, decaying fabrics, moist chipboards, and behind paint. It can also commonly be found in blue rot of apples, dried foods, cheeses, frash herbs, spices, dry cereals, nuts, onions, and oranges. As an allergen, it has been known to cause both Type I allergy symptoms including hay fever and asthma as well as Type III allergy symptoms including hypersensitivity pneumonitis called cheese washer’s lung, woodman’s lung, and moldy wall hypersensitvity. As a pathogen, one species of the Penicillium species called P. marneffei, has been known to cause infection, but has not yet been found in the United States. As a toxigenic agent, it produces penicillic acid, peptide mephrotoxin, viomellein, xanthomegin, xanthocillin X, mycophenolic acid, roquefortine C&D, citrinin, penicillin, cyclopiazonic acid, isofumigaclavine A, penitrem A, decumbin, patulin citreoviridin, griseofulvin, verruculogen, ochratoxin, chrysogine, and meleagrin.
Periconia
Characteristics: Allergenicity has not been studied. Rarely considered pathogenic. Not considered toxigenic.
Description: It is often found in soil, blackened and dead herbaceous stems and leaf spots, grasses, rushes, and sedges. It is disseminated as a dry spore by the wind. This fungus is rarely found growing indoors. As an allergen, it has not been studied. As a rare pathogen it has been known to cause a case of mycotic keratitis. It is not considered a toxigenic agent.
Petriella
Characteristics: Allergenicity, pathogenicity, and toxicity have not been studied.
Description: It is often found in plant debris, seeds, dung, and soil with a yellow or redish brown coloration. It is not known to be allergenic, pathogenic, or toxic.
Phoma
Characteristics: Allergen Type I and Type II, considered to be pathogenic, and not considered toxigenic.
Description: It is often found in plant material, soil, and as a fruit parasite in nature. Indoors, it is often found on walls, ceiling tiles, and on the reverse side of linoleum. It is also found on cement, paint, paper, wood, wool, and such foods as rice and butter. It may have little effect on the indoor air quality because the spores are not readily disseminated by air currents. It is usually disseminated as a dry spore by insects and the wind. As an allergen, it has been known to cause allergies such as hay fever and asthma. As a pathogen, it has been known to cause mycotic keratitis, rare skin infection, and a few cases of subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis. It is not considered a toxigenic agent.
Pithomyces
Characteristics: Not studied as an allergen, no reports of being pathogenic, and produces the toxin Sporidesmin.
Description: It is often found in dead leaves of more than 50 different plants, especially leaf fodders as well as in soil and grasses with a tan to brown coloration. It is disseminated as a dry spore by the wind. It is rarely found indoors unless growing on paper or houseplants. As an allergen, it has not been studied. It has not been reported as being pathogenic. As a toxigenic agent, it produces sporidesmin. Pithomyces chartarum is one of the causes of facial eczema in sheep in New Zealand.
Polythrincium
Characteristics: No information is available reguarding health effects or toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
Description: Polythrincium species comprise a very small proportion of the fungal biota. This genus is somewhat related to Ramularia. No information is available regarding health effects, or toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied. Spores may be seen in dust as part of the normal influx of outdoor microbial particles. Natural habitat is on leaves.
Poria Incrassata
Characteristics: No information is available regarding health effects, or toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
Description: Poria incrassata is one of the basidiomycetes which causes brown rot of wood (dry rot). This fungus is most closely related to Serpula lacrimans (formerly called Merulius). These fungi can digest the cellulose components of wood. A small amount of decay markedly alters the strength of the wood. If the macroscopic fungus fruiting body is collected, it may be identified as a polypore (bracket fungus). The polypores belong to a limited group of fungi capable of attacking wood and using it for food. Wood with brown rot can be identified by observation of typical squarish cracking transverse to the grain of the wood. The wood also shrinks and becomes some shade of brown. The other general type of wood decay is called white rot, where all components (cellulose and lignin) are removed in differing proportions at different rates, and the decayed wood is light-colored. The strength factor is more slowly altered, and frequently the decayed wood is still usable in the early stages of decay. The natural habitat of the polypores is wood, i.e., slash in forests. No information is available regarding health effects, or toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
Pycnidial Formers
Characteristics: No information is available regarding health effects, or toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
Description: Pycnidia are sac-like fruiting bodies (asexual) formed by the many of the Coelomycetes. Spores are commonly formed in sticky masses which ooze out an ostiole (opening). These spores are not readily disseminated by air currents, although they do constitute a small proportion of the air spora. Spores may also be dry, but these forms are less common. The identification of many of the Coelomycetes is difficult because internal sporulating structures are hidden. Some very common genera such as Phoma may be identified on tape lift and tease mounts from bulk samples, and in air by culturable (Andersen) sampling. Many times, however, Coelomycetes are reported simply as “pycnidial former, ID unknown.” Pycnidial fungi are ubiquitous, and are commonly found and recovered from cultivated and uncultivated soil of different types, leaf litter and other organic debris from both natural and manufactured sources, from saline- and fresh-water, on other fungi and lichens, and as parasites of plants, vertebrates and insects.
Pyrenochaeta
Characteristics: No information is available regarding toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
Description: Pyrenochaeta species comprise a small proportion of the fungal biota and is closely related to Phoma. This genus is a pycnidial former although many times pycnidia are lacking and the organism appears only as sterile mycelia. May be identified on tape lifts and tease mounts from bulk samples if the pycnidia are present. (Pycnidial formers may have little effect on the indoor air because the spores are not readily disseminated by air currents.) Very rarely isolated from air by culturable (Andersen) sampling. (Spores do not have distinctive morphology and would be categorized as “other colorless” on spore trap samples.) Natural habitat is plant debris and soil in tropical countries, where it is a cause of mycetoma. No information is available regarding toxicity. Allergenicity has not been studied.
