[Isolation of Cryptococcus neoformans from living tree trunk hollows in Denizli City Center, Turkey]

Cryptococcus neoformans is a basidiomycetous yeast leading to life-threatening infections in human and animals. It has been isolated from decaying hollows and fissures from various tree species in different parts of the world. The isolation of the yeast from the environment is less in the eastern part of Mediterranean area. Only one C. neoformans strain from debris of Eucalyptus camaldulensis in the blossoming period, has been reported by consecutive studies done in suspected areas since the last 10 years. In this study, 300 tree including trunk hollows and fissures have been screened for colonization of C. neoformans in Denizli city (located on Aegean part of Turkey) center during july 2008. All samples has been collected by swabbing technique and cultured on minimal Staib agar medium (without creatinine and potassium dihydroden phosphate). Two (0.6%) strains of C. neoformans have been isolated from the total of 300 screened trees. One of these isolates was from Platanus orientalis (plane tree; n = 92) and one from Punica granatum (pomegranate tree; n = 2). Six and three colonies per plate have been isolated from P. orientalis and P. granatum samples, respectively. C. neoformans has not been isolated in the repeat cultures done in the following two months. Although C. neoformans was isolated from previously unac-complished niches in this study, our results suggested that C. neoformans colonization of trees trunk hollows and fissures was not common in Denizli city center.