The Marsupial Didelphis albiventris is an Improbable Host of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis in an Endemic Area of Paracoccidioidomycosis in Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

To determine whether Didelphis albiventris is naturally infected with Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, 20 specimens of this mammal were studied by both direct cultivation of their viscera (spleen, liver and lungs) and by inoculation of Swiss mice by the intraperitoneal route with a suspension of fragments of these viscera. No fungal growth or structures similar to this fungus were detected. Probably D. albiventris is not frequently infected with P. brasiliensis.