[Pathogenicity of "Candida albicans" for normal mice and mice treated by the mycotoxin diacetoxyscirpenol (author's...

The study of the action of diacetoxyscirpenol, a mycotoxin from Fusarium, was carried out on mice. It was found that a single dose of 1/2 DL50 (4.5 mg/kg) inoculated intraperitoneally, induced a transitory diminution of weight of the spleen and thymus and fall in the percentage of blood lymphocyte. The effect on the course of candidiasis was obvious: the mice challenged with C. albicans and treated by small repeated doses of mycotoxin died more rapidly than not treated but infected mice, emphasizing significantly the effect of the immunosuppressive processus on the development of the opportunistic fungus.