A Repertoire of the Less Common Clinical Yeasts

Area of Science:

• Medical Mycology
• Clinical Microbiology
• Yeast Taxonomy

Background:

• Invasive fungal diseases pose a growing public health challenge, particularly in immunocompromised patients.
• While Candida species are common culprits, less common yeasts are increasingly recognized as opportunistic pathogens.
• These less common yeasts include specific genera within Ascomycota and Basidiomycota.

Purpose of the Study:

• To catalog human-pathogenic yeasts beyond the major Candida species.
• To describe the anatomical sites and clinical presentations associated with infections caused by these less common yeasts.
• To provide an updated classification of relevant yeast species.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review and database mining (MycoBank, NCBI Taxonomy).
• Identification and classification of fungal taxa associated with human infections.
• Analysis of reported yeast isolation sites and clinical characteristics.

Main Results:

• A comprehensive list of 192 less common yeast species (127 Ascomycota, 65 Basidiomycota) isolated from humans was compiled.
• Specific anatomical tropisms and clinical manifestations for these yeasts were detailed.
• An updated taxonomic overview of these clinically relevant yeasts was established.

Conclusions:

• Less common yeasts represent a significant, often underestimated, group of human pathogens.
• Understanding their distribution and clinical relevance is crucial for accurate diagnosis and management.
• This work serves as a valuable resource for diagnostic laboratories and clinicians managing invasive fungal infections.