[Identification of fungal pathogens in tissue samples using fluorescence in situ hybridization]

Deep fungal infections are associated with significant mortality despite the availability of new antifungal agents. The identification of causative fungi is important to define successful antifungal therapies as agents differ in the in vitro susceptibility. Characterization of tissue morphology and cultivation from tissue provide important clues to patient management. Molecular techniques such as PCR-based assays are increasingly being used to identify agents of invasive fungal infections. However, potential contamination limits the use when ubiquitous fungi are targeted. Hybridization with fluorescently labeled probes targeting the ribosomal RNA of fungi is emerging as an alternative identification strategy. Using conserved or variable regions of the rRNA as targets, group or species-specific probes can be synthesized to identify fungal pathogens and localize them in the infectious process. These techniques have been successfully applied to deep fungal infections due to different agents in various organ samples.