HUMAN INFECTION BY RHIZOPUS-AZYGOSPORUS AND THE OCCURRENCE OF AZYGOSPORES IN ZYGOMYCETES

Fungal isolates from the peritoneal cavity, kidney and liver, respecti vely, of three premature Australian babies are described as Rhizopus a zygosporus. All three babies died. This is the first report as far as we know of the isolation of this fungus from human infections. It has previously been isolated only from Indonesian tempeh. The source of th ese infections was not determined. Rhizopus azygosporus is closely rel ated to R. microsporus var. microsporus, var. rhizopodiformis and var. chinensis. The occurrence of azygospores in Zygomycetes and the taxon omic position of R. azygosporus are discussed.