Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Transmission of Pneumocystis carinii  Disease from Immunocompetent Contacts of Infected Hosts to Susceptible Hosts

  • Article
  • Published:
European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract Pneumocystis carinii

organisms constitute a large group of heterogeneous atypical microscopic fungi that are able to infect immunocompromised mammals by an airborne route and to proliferate in their lungs, inducing Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. This pneumonia remains a crucial epidemiological challenge, since neither the source of Pneumocystis carinii infection in humans nor the process by which humans become infected has been clearly established. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays have shown that profoundly immunosuppressed patients without pneumocystosis can be subclinically infected with Pneumocystis. Other PCR-based studies have suggested that healthy immunocompetent hosts are not latent carriers of the parasite. However, recent reports have indicated that Pneumocystis carinii can persist for limited periods in the lungs of convalescent rats after recovery from corticosteroid-induced pneumocystosis, and also that immunocompetent mammals can be transiently parasitized by Pneumocystis carinii after close contact with hosts with Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Can transiently parasitized hosts be a source of infection for immunosuppressed hosts? In order to investigate this important clinical question, the ability of immunocompetent BALB/c mice, which were carrying subclinical levels of Pneumocystis carinii, to transmit the infection by the airborne route to highly susceptible, uninfected mice with severe combined immunodeficiency was studied. The results indicated that the immunocompetent mice, transiently parasitized by Pneumocystis carinii organisms after close contact with Pneumocystis carinii-infected mice, were able to transmit the infection to Pneumocystis carinii-free mice with severe combined immunodeficiency.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Dumoulin, A., Mazars, E., Seguy, N. et al. Transmission of Pneumocystis carinii  Disease from Immunocompetent Contacts of Infected Hosts to Susceptible Hosts. EJCMID 19, 671–678 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s100960000354

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s100960000354

Keywords

Navigation