A crude toxin fraction has been isolated from mycelia and culture filtrates of Aspergillus fumigatus, and some biological properties such as dermonecrotic, hemorrhagic, hemolytic and lethalitic activities were found in the crude toxin. A hemolytic toxin (Asp-hemolysin) was purified from the fraction. Physical, chemical and biological characteristics were investigated in the hemolytic toxin. The hemolytic toxin production was studied by using different culture conditions and several strains. The hemolytic activity of Asp-hemolysin was inhibited specifically by Hg²⁺, and could be restored by addition of SH reagents. Another many characteristics of the hemolysin were discussed in comparisonn with those in bacterial hemolvsins.

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In the treatment of a giant pulmonary aspergilloma in a 44-year-old man who had undergone left superior lobectomy for pulmonary tuberculosis, we inserted Nélaton's catheter in to drainage bronchi of the cavity, placing its tip around the site where the leading bronchus of the cavity opened into the main bronchus, and infused 1mg of 5-fluorocytosine (5-FC) 3 times and 5mg of it 7 times, total 38mg 5-FC in 10 doses, through the catheter, with the resultant disappearance of the fungus ball in the cavity. Although the intracavity infusion against pulmonary aspergilloma had been tried in the past with amphotericin B, sodium iodate, clotrimazole or natamycin, that with 5-FC has never been done. This is a brief report on the method, course and clinical effect of 5-FC treatment.

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A partially purified extracellular keratinase obtained from the culture filtrate of a Microsporum gypseum strain showed two separate bands on disc electrophoresis at pH 4.0 gel. Keratinase activity was detected in accordance with the second band on this gel. The keratinase was activated by calcium but inhibited by magnesium, manganese and EDTA. The keratinase was also activated by the presence of thiol reagents such as 2-ME and DTT, whereas its inhibition was observed under the presence of iodoacetamide and NEM. The DFP has no apparent effect on the keratinase activity. The keratinase activity was inhibited by adding whole human serum. This inhibitory effect of the serum was lost after treating with anti-α₂-macroglobulin. Immunoelectrophoretic analysis revealed the presence of α₂-macroglobulin in the vesicle fluid from a patient with Tinea pedis. These results suggest that the keratinase might be one of thiol proteases and inhibited by human α₂-macroglobulin.

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A functional evaluation was made on ‹Mycotube› Roche for identifications of pathogenic and naturally occurring yeasts. When 10 species (40 strains), whose ID codes are described in CCIS index and very frequently isolated from patients with mycoses, were examined, 30 strains were simply and correctly identified by Mycotube alone or with supplementary tests including Mycoslide, while new ID codes were proposed to set for 4 species. Furthermore, examination of 19 clinically isolated strains showed that the identification of 18 strains by each hospital coincided with our simple Mycotube identification, whereas 1 strain was corrected to Cryptococcus neoformans by our tests. Mycotube tests of 28 species (66 strains) of yeasts not described in CCIS led to the setting of new ID codes for 24 yeast species frequently occurring in nature. The items for supplementary tests were set forth in order to differentiate from strains having the same ID code to reach the final identification.

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Fifteen cases of T. violaceum infection, 5 males and 10 females, examined during the past 7 years in Nagasaki prefecture are reported (Table 1). Every patient had some kind of tinea capitis lesion ranged from pityriasis-like, black-dot ringworm to kerion beside other ringworm lesions on the other part of the body surface (Table 2). Several patients with pityriasis-like form, black-dot ringworm or tinea corporis had non- or poor-inflammatory lesions, which were easily misdiagnosed as “not-fungal” and after receiving corticosteroid therapy, were progressed into kerion or widespread tinea lesions. T. violaceum is thought tobe carried subclinically among the patient's family and neighbors for several years as an infection source, and the mycological examination of them is necessary to eradicate infection. All these characteristics of T. violaceum infection are considered due to the highly anthropophilic nature of this dermatophyte.

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As already reported in our previous paper, the extract from Candida albicans, which was isolated from the patient with Kawasaki disease, induced arteritis of the coronary artery in mice. This histopathological feature of the arteritis was granulomatous, but not with fibrinoid necrosis, which was quite similar to that of arteritis in Kawasaki disease. There is no specific therapy for Kawasaki disease, because the etiology of the disease is still unknown. However, aspirin and steroid hormones have been used frequently for the patient. This experiment was performed to investigate the effect of aspirin and predonine on the experimental arteritis in mice. As the result, their promotive effect on the development of arteritis was not observed in histological findings, but somewhat different result was obtained between prophylactic effect on the arteritis by those two drugs. It was suspected that predonine seemed to prevent the development of the arteritis rather than aspirin. Although the chemical agents for the arteritis were studied by using purified protein and polysaccharide extracted from Candida albicans MCLS-2. As the result, only polysaccharide fraction induced the arteritis in mice.

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