''Aspergillus lentulus'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of ''

Aspergillus ' () is a genus consisting of several hundred mold species found in various climates worldwide. ''Aspergillus'' was first catalogued in 1729 by the Italian priest and biologist Pier Antonio Micheli. Viewing the fungi under a microscope, Miche ...

'' fungus. It is a close relative of ''

Aspergillus fumigatus ''Aspergillus fumigatus'' is a species of fungus in the genus ''Aspergillus'', and is one of the most common ''Aspergillus'' species to cause disease in individuals with an immunodeficiency. ''Aspergillus fumigatus'', a saprotroph widespread in ...

''. It has smaller

conidia A conidium ( ; ), sometimes termed an asexual chlamydospore or chlamydoconidium (), is an asexual, non-motile spore of a fungus. The word ''conidium'' comes from the Ancient Greek word for dust, ('). They are also called mitospores due to the ...

l heads with diminutive vesicles compared to '' A. fumigatus'', and cannot survive at . It also has decreased ''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in biology an ...

'' susceptibilities to multiple

antifungals An antifungal medication, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis (thrush), serious systemic infections such as crypto ...

, including

amphotericin B Amphotericin B is an antifungal medication used for serious fungal infections and leishmaniasis. The fungal infections it is used to treat include mucormycosis, aspergillosis, blastomycosis, candidiasis, coccidioidomycosis, and cryptococcosis. Fo ...

itraconazole Itraconazole, sometimes abbreviated ITZ, is an antifungal medication used to treat a number of fungal infections. This includes aspergillosis, blastomycosis, coccidioidomycosis, histoplasmosis, and paracoccidioidomycosis. It may be given by mouth ...

voriconazole Voriconazole, sold under the brand name Vfend among others, is an antifungal medication used to treat a number of fungal infections. This includes aspergillosis, candidiasis, coccidioidomycosis, histoplasmosis, penicilliosis, and infections by '' ...

, and

caspofungin Caspofungin (INN) (brand name Cancidas) is a lipopeptide antifungal drug from Merck & Co., Inc. discovered by James Balkovec, Regina Black and Frances A. Bouffard. It is a member of a new class of antifungals termed the echinocandins. It wor ...

. ''Aspergillus lentulus'' is an opportunistic human pathogen that causes invasive aspergillosis with high mortality rates. It has been isolated from clinical and environmental sources. Since it was described in 2005 as a new species, it was thought to reproduce only asexually. However, in 2013 Swilaiman et al. (2013) found that ''A. lentulus'' has a functional sexual cycle. During this cycle cleistothecia are produced that, when mature, contain heat-resistant ascospores.

Growth and morphology

''A. lentulus'' has been cultivated on both Czapek yeast extract agar (CYA) plates and Malt Extract Agar Oxoid® (MEAOX) plates. The growth morphology of the colonies can be seen in the pictures below. Aspergillus_lentulus_cya.png, ''Aspergillus lentulus'' growing on CYA plate Aspergillus_lentulus_meaox.png, ''Aspergillus lentulus'' growing on MEAOX plate

References

lentulus Aquatic fungi Fungi described in 2005 {{Eurotiomycetes-stub