[Recent progress in molecular diagnostic technology in clinical mycology]

Diagnosing deep-seated mycoses continues to be a major challenge for the clinician. The non-culture-dependent laboratory assay with high sensitivity and specificity are needed for rapid diagnosis of deep-seated mycoses. The most promising methodology that has this potential is the detection of fungus-specific DNA. Over the last five years, increasing numbers of papers were published which document the molecular biological assays feasible to detect fungus-specific DNA sequences in clinical specimens. In almost all of the assays thus far reported, DNA was detected following in vitro amplification using the RCR technology. This review will deal with those PCR assays which were developed, with the aim of diagnosing or screening deep-seated mycoses, for the detection of DNA from Candida species, Aspergillus species, Penicillium marneffei and Cryptococcus neoformans. Some of the PCR assays described here have been successfully used with clinical specimens to detect fungi, more rapidly and with a greater degree of sensitivity and/or specificity than by conventional means. It suggests us that PCR-based amplification strategies may help pave the way for modern clinical laboratory to better assist the clinician in diagnosing deep-seated mycoses.