Latent Cases of Paracoccidioidomycosis Ceti in an Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin(Tursiops truncatus) and a False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens) Diagnosed by the Combination of Polymerase Chain Reaction and Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification

Abstract

　Paracoccidioidomycosis ceti caused by Paracoccidioides cetii is a zoonotic chronic granulomatous dermatitis in cetaceans that have been reported worldwide, however cases by molecular biological confirmation are rare. We applied a sensitive molecular biological diagnostic tool for paracoccidioidomycosis ceti by combining polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) on two suspected cases showing clinical symptoms alone and lacked cytological findings of the characteristic fungal cells: A 9-year-old male Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) born in a Japanese aquarium and a female false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) stranded on a Japanese coast, corresponding to the 16th and 17th cases of paracoccidioidomycosis ceti diagnosed by molecular biology. Additionally, this is the first report of paracoccidioidomycosis ceti in a false killer whale.