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Farmer's lung following inhalation of Aspergillus flavus growing in mouldy corn
Author(s) -
PATTERSON R.,
SOMMERS H.,
FINK J. N.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
clinical and experimental allergy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.462
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2222
pISSN - 0954-7894
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2222.1974.tb01365.x
Subject(s) - aspergillus flavus , hypersensitivity pneumonitis , inhalation , microbiology and biotechnology , aspergillus fumigatus , aspergillus , biology , antigen , immunology , lung , medicine , anatomy
Summary After a latent period of 3 weeks following an intense inhalational exposure to mouldy corn, a farmer developed pneumonilis apparently of a hypersensilivity pneumonitis type. This illness was associated with serum precipitating antibodies against antigens in the mouldy corn and against antigens of Aspergillus flavus and fumigatus . The former organism was cultured from the mouldy corn and precipilin bands of identity between an extract of mouldy corn and aspergitlus antigen were demonstrated using the patient's serum. Organizing bronchiolilis oblilerans was found in pulmonary tissue after death occurred, the latter presumably due to pulmonary embolism. This case is believed to represent the occurrence of hypersensitivity pneumonitis following massive inhalation of the spores of the genus A. flavus possibly with transient respiratory infection with these organisms but without systemic invasion of the host.