Introduction to Medical Mycology
Objectives
At the end of the currricular unit students:
- Understand the classification and evolution of fungi, the importance of these organisms as agents of disease and the strategies and difficulties associated with their treatment;
- Demonstrate how to diagnose the main fungal infections in the laboratory;
- Critically discuss the advantages and limitations of laboratory diagnostic approaches currently available in medical mycology.
General characterization
Code
10120
Credits
2.0
Responsible teacher
João José Inácio Silva
Hours
Weekly - 1
Total - 17
Teaching language
Português
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of microbiology.
Bibliography
Barroso H, Meliço-SilvestreA, Taveira N (Eds). 2014. Microbiologia Médica. Lidel, Lisboa
Kauffman CA, Pappas PG, Sobel JD, Dismukes WE (Eds). 2011. Essentials of Clinical Mycology. Springer-Verlag, New York
Kibbler CC, Barton R, Gow NAR, Howell S, MacCallum DM, Manuel RJ (Eds.) 2017. Oxford Textbook of Medical Mycology. OUP Oxford, Oxford
Reiss E, Shadomy HJ, Lyon GM (Eds). 2012. Fundamental Medical Mycology. Wiley Blackwell, New Jersey
Teaching method
The theoretical concepts are taught with an expositive method, promoting interaction, oriented dialogue and discussion with students, stimulating the pedagogical action. The laboratory work is carried out in groups of two to four students. Each group must fill out a form about the results obtained in lab classes and discuss these in the class.
Evaluation method
The assessment is performed by a final written examination about the contents taught in lectures and lab classes, with the duration of one hour, incorporating 40 multiple-choice questions. The approval to this curricular unit requires a classification of at least 10 (out of 20) marks.
Subject matter
Topics addressed in lectures include:
Characteristics, classification and importance of fungi. The human mycobiome.
Brief history of medical mycology. Clinically relevant fungi. Cutaneous, subcutaneous and systemic mycoses. Opportunistic mycoses.
Conventional and molecular methods for laboratory mycological diagnosis.
Therapy and susceptibility to antifungal drugs.
Topics addressed in practical classes include:
Laboratory methods for isolation, culture and identification of fungal organisms.
Collection and processing of samples for laboratory mycological examination. Macroscopic and microscopic observation of filamentous fungi and yeast cultures.
Determination of susceptibility to antifungal agents. Evaluation of synergy between different antifungal agents.