Immunodetection of fungal and oomycete pathogens: established and emerging threats to human health, animal welfare and global food security

Abstract

Filamentous fungi (moulds), yeast-like fungi, and oomycetes cause life-threatening infections of humans and animals and are a major constraint to global food security, constituting a significant economic burden to both agriculture and medicine. As well as causing localized or systemic infections, certain species are potent producers of allergens and toxins that exacerbate respiratory diseases or cause cancer and organ damage. We review the pathogenic and toxigenic organisms that are etiologic agents of both animal and plant diseases or that have recently emerged as serious pathogens of immunocompromised individuals. The use of hybridoma and phage display technologies and their success in generating monoclonal antibodies for the detection and control of fungal and oomycete pathogens are explored. Monoclonal antibodies hold enormous potential for the development of rapid and specific tests for the diagnosis of human mycoses, however, unlike plant pathology, their use in medical mycology remains to be fully exploited.

Keywords: Allergens; Aspergillus; Fusarium; Pythium; Scedosporium; hybridoma technology; monoclonal antibody; mycotoxins; phage antibody display; recombinant antigen; zygomycetes.