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Survival and Infectivity of Pneumocystis carinii Outside the Mammalian Host.
Author(s) -
KANESHIRO EDNA S.,
MAIORANO J. NICHOLAS
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of eukaryotic microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.067
H-Index - 77
eISSN - 1550-7408
pISSN - 1066-5234
DOI - 10.1111/j.1550-7408.1996.tb04971.x
Subject(s) - pneumocystis carinii , infectivity , biology , host (biology) , microbiology and biotechnology , virology , immunology , ecology , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , virus , pneumocystis jirovecii
SUMMARY Air blower prefilters servicing HEPA‐filtered Biobubble housing Pneumocystis carinii ‐infected rats were stored for up to five months at ‐80°C to room temperature. After storage, 76% of immunosuppressed rats exposed to these prefilters developed P. carinii infections. In contrast, only 4% of control immunosuppressed rats exposed to autoclaved filters had P. carinii infections. These observations indicate that the organism has a dormant form that remains infective for at least several months outside the mammalian host.