Molecular detection of airborne Coccidioides in Tucson, Arizona
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Abstract
Environmental surveillance of the soil-dwelling fungus Coccidioides is essential for the prevention of Valley fever, a disease primarily caused by inhalation of the arthroconidia. Methods for collecting and detectingCoccidioides in soil samples are currently in use by several laboratories; however, a method utilizing current air sampling technologies has not been formally demonstrated for the capture of airborne arthroconidia. In this study, we collected air/dust samples at two sites (Site A and Site B) in the endemic region of Tucson, Arizona, and tested a variety of air samplers and membrane matrices. We then employed a single-tube nested qPCR assay for molecular detection. At both sites, numerous soil samples (n = 10 at Site A and n = 24 at Site B) were collected and Coccidioides was detected in two samples (20%) at Site A and in eight samples (33%) at Site B. Of the 25 air/dust samples collected at both sites using five different air sampling methods, we detected Coccidioides in three samples from site B. All three samples were collected using a high-volume sampler with glass-fiber filters. In this report, we describe these methods and propose the use of these air sampling and molecular detection strategies for environmental surveillance of Coccidioides.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Molecular detection of airborne Coccidioides in Tucson, Arizona |
| Series title | Medical Mycology |
| DOI | 10.1093/mmy/myw022 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Year Published | 2016 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Oxford Journals |
| Contributing office(s) | St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Toxic Substances Hydrology Program |
| Description | 9 p. |
| First page | 584 |
| Last page | 592 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| City | Tucson |
| Online Only (Y/N) | N |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | N |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |