Mycology 2019

Fungal Pathogens

Pathogenic fungi cause disease in humans or other organisms, which is called as fungal pathogenesisThis is particularly true of fungal pathogenesis that there is no single factor that causes or permits these organisms to be agents of diseases that range from superficial through invasive diseases in Plant, Animal, and Humans. Fungal pathogens can be divided into two general classes primary pathogens and opportunistic pathogens. Fungi in the former class usually have an environmental reservoir and infect individuals who have either been exposed to a large dose or who are immunologically naïve to the fungus while opportunistic fungal pathogens take advantage of debilitated or immune compromised hosts to cause infection. Examples of major disease causing fungi are Candida, Aspergillus, Cryptococcus, Histoplasma, Pneumocystis, Stachybotrys etc.