A new article published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology discussed that fungal infections pose a serious public health problem. Here, the endemic fungal infections encompassed in this article include – coccidioidomycosis, histoplasmosis, blastomycosis, lobomycosis, emergomycosis and sporotrichosis. 

The authors stated that dermatophytes cause superficial fungal infections of skin, hair and nails, which are the most prevalent mycoses worldwide with a high economic burden. Therefore, the possibility of causing zoonoses and reverse zoonoses by dermatophytes is highly relevant. Skin lesions in of dermatophytosis typically include erythematous plaques with an annular configuration. These are characterized by scaling, pustules, itching, inflammation and hair and nail loss. The nomenclature is based on the infected area of the human body, for instance – tinea unguium  or onychomycosis in fingernails; tinea faciei on the face; tinea pedis or athletes foot on the feet; and tinea corporis on any glabrous skin. On the other hand, infection by anthropophilic dermatophytes is usually recognized by the chronic nature with mild inflammation, whereas severe inflammation is caused by zoophilic or geophilic pathogens.

Dermatophytosis in animals is usually asymptomatic; however, animal carriers is a major route of infection transmission—50% of humans exposed to infected asymptomatic animals can be symptomatically infected. Furthermore, nosocomial outbreaks, indicating that human‐to‐human transmission, have been recorded. Such are cases of reverse zoonosis, in which animals become infected from humans. 

Although the rate of spread of fungal infections is lower that other transmissible microbial diseases causing epidemics, these diseases show a high prevalence. Attention must be focused on fungal pathogens, in the context of newer and yet unknown zoonoses, affecting both, human and animal health. Wild animals are still an underestimated reservoir of fungal pathogens. Furthermore, there exists a lack of public programmes for prevention and control of these types of infection. 

Source: Journal of Applied Microbiology. 2021 Mar 23. doi: 10.1111/jam.15084.