Medical Mycology

Medical mycology is a branch of microbiology that studies pathogenic fungal infections in humans and animals. It is a significant field of medicine because fungi are a major threat to human health and cause a wide range of various diseases. These include dermal infections, diseases of organs and systems of organs, allergies, asthma, meningitis. Fungal infections affect and are the most dangerous for severely immunocompromised people, the elderly, HIV patients, people with disruptions of protective bacterial microflora, suffered trauma or other infections. The situation is complicated by the fact that fungal infections are even more immunosuppressed.

Fungi are widely distributed in the environment. They are resistant and can multiply in both acidic and alkaline environments. Some fungi are found as a part of the normal flora of the organism, of the gastrointestinal tract, mouth, skin, genitourinary tract. However, with a reduce in immunity, they may cause mucosal infections, skin infections, allergies, and even mortality. Fungal infections may affect a complex set of disease states. Global mortality owing to fungal infections is greater than for other diseases.

The most pathogenic fungi are:

• Cryptococcus neoformans
• Aspergillus fumigatus
• Aspergillus flavus
• Candida albicans
• Candida auris

Most common fungal diseases in humans include:

• Candidiasis
• Athlete’s Foot
• Jock Itch
• Ringworm
• Yeast Infection
• Onychomycosis
• Valley Fever
• Histoplasmosis
• Blastomycosis
• Pneumocystis pneumonia

In this way, the research in medical mycology and fungal immunology are really important. Mycology helped to understand fungal biodiversity, its classification, evolution, pathogenesis, genetics, physiology, functions, and role in ecology. It allowed using of some fungi types in industrial needs like pharmaceutical production of antibiotics, the food industry. The latest improvements in medical equipment and diagnostic platforms allow identifying of infecting fungi more quickly and with better accuracy and precision.

Example 1. Medical Mycology Infographics in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM

Mycology research increase success in diagnostics and analysis of fungal infections in clinical laboratories, examination of protective immunity mechanisms and immunological risks, enzymes produced and secreted by the fungi, genes and proteins, synthesis pathways, and metabolites. They help to control mycotoxin contaminations, antifungal drugs development, ways of immunotherapy, treatment, and prevention of life-threatening fungal infections, ringworm prevention, candidas and cryptococcus prevention, and more other fungi types. At the same time, medical mycology should be dynamic because new pathogenic fungi are identified regularly. In addition, the reduction of drug resistance of some fungi types complicates treatment. In the last decades, antimycotic resistance has significantly increased for many reasons.

Example 2. Medical Mycology Infographic - Histoplasma Life Cycle

The Medical Mycology solution for ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software is developed specially for fast and easy designing medical mycology infographics, diagrams and illustrations. It includes 17 libraries with a huge collection of pre-made vector design elements:

Example 3. Medical Mycology Libraries Design Elements

Use these objects to describe a variety of fungal pathogens and mycotoxins, diseases they cause in people and animals, the results of the latest research in medical mycology, microbiology, and treatment of fungal diseases. Make the overview of typical symptoms of most common fungal diseases, ways to prevent infection, methods to diagnose and treat mycosis, ways of immunotherapy and complex antifungal therapy, problem of antifungal resistance. The included samples and examples are also a perfect base for your own illustrations.

Example 4. Medical Mycology Infographic - Pneumocystis Life Cycle

The mycology infographics you see on this page were created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software using the Medical Mycology Solution. They successfully demonstrate the solution's capabilities and the professional results you can achieve. An experienced user spent 10-15 minutes creating each of these samples.

Use the powerful tools of the Medical Mycology Solution for ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software to create your own infographics and diagrams of any complexity fast and easy, and then successfully use them in your work activity.

All source documents are vector graphic documents. They are available for reviewing, modifying, or converting to a variety of formats (PDF file, MS PowerPoint, MS Visio, and many more graphic formats) from the ConceptDraw STORE. The Medical Mycology Solution is available for all ConceptDraw DIAGRAM users.