Fungal flora of normal eyes of healthy horses from the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Abstract: The conjunctival fungal flora of 32 adult horses with normal eyes (n = 64) from the State of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil was identified in the fall of 2000 using horses of different breeds, both genders and aged 5-19 years old. The culture samples were taken from the conjunctival sac of both eyes with a sterile cotton swab wetted with saline solution, seeded in Sabouraud's dextrose agar with chloramphenicol, and incubated for 5 days at an average temperature of 25 degrees C. The number of fungal colonies per eye varied between 0 and 250 colony forming units (CFUs). There were often differences in colony types between eyes of the same animal. Filamentous fungi of genera were isolated and identified in the following proportion of the total genera of fungal colonies isolated: Aspergillus (32.2%), Penicillium (25.8%), Scopulariopsis (15.9%), Trichoderma (11.2%), Cladosporium (5.6%), Mucor (2.1%), Syncephalastrum (2.1%), Eurotium (1.7%), Geotrichum (0.9%), Rhizopus (0.9%), Gliomastix (0.4%), Fusarium (0.4%), Staphylotrichum (0.4%) and Verticillium (0.4%). Yeast genera represented 9% of the total isolates. Over half the horses had at least one normal eye with either Aspergillus, Penicillium, Trichoderma or Scopulariopsis isolated, which is a departure from other studies of the normal horse eye.
Publication Date: 2003-03-19 PubMed ID: 12641843DOI: 10.1046/j.1463-5224.2003.00267.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
Summary
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This study aimed to identify the types of fungi present in the eyes of healthy horses from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Through the process, varying types and amounts of fungi were found in the conjunctival sacs of the horses’ eyes, which differ from previous studies.
Study Design and Methodology
- The research was conducted on 32 adult horses from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil during the fall of 2000. The horses varied in breed, gender and age ranging from 5 to 19 years old.
- Culture samples were taken from the conjunctival sac of both eyes using a sterile cotton swab. The swab was moistened with saline solution.
- The samples were then placed in Sabouraud’s dextrose agar with chloramphenicol and left to incubate for 5 days at an average temperature of 25 degrees Celsius.
- The amount of fungus that grew in the culture was then counted, with colony forming units (CFUs) ranging from 0 to 250 per eye. The types of colonies could often differ between the eyes of the same horse.
Findings and Results
- Fourteen different genera of filamentous fungi were isolated and identified from the collected samples. The most common were Aspergillus, Penicillium, Scopulariopsis, and Trichoderma. Other identified fungi included Cladosporium, Mucor, Syncephalastrum, Eurotium, Geotrichum, Rhizopus, Gliomastix, Fusarium, Staphylotrichum and Verticillium.
- Yeast genera represented 9% of the total fungal colonies isolated.
- Over half of the horses had at least one healthy eye in which either Aspergillus, Penicillium, Trichoderma or Scopulariopsis were isolated.
Significance of the Study
- This study contributes to the understanding of the normal fungal flora present in the eyes of horses.
- The variety and presence of certain fungi in the eyes of the horses in this study deviates from results of previous studies in the same context, thus suggesting that factors such as geographic location and environmental conditions might have a significant influence on the fungal flora.
Cite This Article
APA
Rosa M, Cardozo LM, da Silva Pereira J, Brooks DE, Martins AL, Florido PS, Stussi JS.
(2003).
Fungal flora of normal eyes of healthy horses from the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Vet Ophthalmol, 6(1), 51-55.
https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1463-5224.2003.00267.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- CEPOV-Centro de Estudo, Pesquisa e Oftalmologia Veterinária, R Heitor de Moura, Estevão, 468, Teresópolis, RJ, Brazil. marcmax@openlink.com.br
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Brazil
- Conjunctiva / microbiology
- Female
- Fungi / isolation & purification
- Horses / microbiology
- Male
- Reference Values
Citations
This article has been cited 11 times.- Mo PM, Picard J, Gummow B. The conjunctival fungal microflora of horses in a North Queensland tropical environment and their in vitro susceptibilities to antifungal agents. Vet Res Commun 2023 Sep;47(3):1641-1651.
- Foote BC, Smith JS, Bowden AC, Allbaugh RA, Sebbag L. Case Report: Successful Management of Refractory Keratomycosis in an Alpaca Using Penetrating Keratoplasty and Combination Antifungal Therapy (Caspofungin 0.5% and Terbinafine 1%). Front Vet Sci 2021;8:644074.
- Tahoun A, Elnafarawy HK, Elmahallawy EK, Abdelhady A, Rizk AM, El-Sharkawy H, Youssef MA, El-Khodery S, Ibrahim HMM. Epidemiological and Molecular Investigation of Ocular Fungal Infection in Equine from Egypt. Vet Sci 2020 Sep 8;7(3).
- Darden JE, Scott EM, Arnold C, Scallan EM, Simon BT, Suchodolski JS. Evaluation of the bacterial ocular surface microbiome in clinically normal cats before and after treatment with topical erythromycin. PLoS One 2019;14(10):e0223859.
- Mustikka MP, Grönthal TSC, Pietilä EM. Equine infectious keratitis in Finland: Associated microbial isolates and susceptibility profiles. Vet Ophthalmol 2020 Jan;23(1):148-159.
- Zak A, Siwinska N, Slowikowska M, Borowicz H, Ploneczka-Janeczko K, Chorbinski P, Niedzwiedz A. Conjunctival aerobic bacterial flora in healthy Silesian foals and adult horses in Poland. BMC Vet Res 2018 Aug 31;14(1):261.
- Bonelli F, Barsotti G, Attili AR, Mugnaini L, Cuteri V, Preziuso S, Corazza M, Preziuso G, Sgorbini M. Conjunctival bacterial and fungal flora in clinically normal sheep. Vet Rec Open 2014;1(1):e000017.
- de Sousa ME, Araújo MA, Mota RA, Porto WJ, Souza AK, Dos Santos JL, da Silva PP. Fungal microbiota from ocular conjuctiva of clinically healthy horses belonging to the military police cavalry of alagoas. Braz J Microbiol 2011 Jul;42(3):1151-5.
- Reed Z, Thomasy SM, Good KL, Maggs DJ, Magdesian KG, Pusterla N, Hollingsworth SR. Equine keratomycoses in California from 1987 to 2010 (47 cases). Equine Vet J 2013 May;45(3):361-6.
- Perrucci S, Zini A, Donadio E, Mancianti F, Fichi G. Isolation of Scopulariopsis spp. fungi from Psoroptes cuniculi body surface and evaluation of their entomopathogenic role. Parasitol Res 2008 Apr;102(5):957-62.
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