Abstract
Interest in the study of mycotic diseases in bats has increased after the identification of bats affected by white-nose syndrome in the northern United States. In a temperate forest of the community of San Pedro Yolox, Ixtlán in the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca, Mexico, we collected bats of various species, including 13 specimens of Myotis velifer that showed lesions in the plagio- and uro-patagium. Clinical exploration, histopathological studies and molecular analysis were carried out to determine the causal agent of the lesions present in these individuals. It was determined that the cause was the pathogenic fungus Debaryomyces spp. The present study represents the first report of fungal infection in bats in southern Mexico.
Highlights
The fungal agent Pseudogymnoascus destructans responsible for bat population declines in the northern United States has increased the interest in the study of bat fungal diseases
Trichophyton redellii is characterized by the development of lesions similar to White-nose syndrome (WNS), with the difference that it does not fluoresce under a UV lamp and that the characteristic growth of fungal structures is in the snout, while Debaryomyces spp. was reported in a case with lesions similar to those of WNS but without describing the status of the infected specimen in greater detail (Lorch et al 2015)
The normal reaction of a healthy individual to their colonization may be mediated by lymphocytes and cytokines (Romani 2004)
Summary
The fungal agent Pseudogymnoascus destructans responsible for bat population declines in the northern United States has increased the interest in the study of bat fungal diseases. Trichophyton redellii is characterized by the development of lesions similar to WNS, with the difference that it does not fluoresce under a UV lamp and that the characteristic growth of fungal structures is in the snout, while Debaryomyces spp. was reported in a case with lesions similar to those of WNS but without describing the status of the infected specimen in greater detail (Lorch et al 2015). During our study on the ecological aspects of a community of bats in the Sierra Norte de Oaxaca, we collected some individuals of Myotis velifer with damaged wings. For this reason, we decided to investigate the causal agent of the lesions present in these individuals.
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