Experimental studies on an imported mycosis, coccidioidomycosis

球孢子菌病是所有真菌感染中最严重的疾病，它是一种进口真菌病，在日本是令人恐惧的。我们获得了日本文部科学省的“科学研究补助金”，对真菌和疾病进行了两年的研究。得到的结果如下：1。阐明了真菌的形态、生长速率和耐热性。此外，我们还成功地将C.immitis与malbranchea进行了区分。用琼脂植入法观察了C.immitis在体内的形态转化。结果表明，该方法可用于模拟球体。利用扫描电子显微镜研究了c . imimtis的关节孢子在体内转化为胞内小球体的过程。由于这一观察结果，详细阐明了c . imimtis在体内的寄生周期。用组织病理学方法观察组织对牙周炎感染的反应。组织反应与球粒的发育阶段密切相关。对关节孢子的反应很弱，因此接种到小鼠体内的关节孢子在组织中存活。年轻球粒（内生孢子）的组织病理学特征是明显的化脓性炎症反应，而成熟球粒的组织病理学特征是肉芽肿性炎症反应。我们成功地诊断了一位最近从美国回来的球孢子菌病患者。

Coccidioides immitis is the causetive agent of coccidioidomycosis which is the severest disease of all the mycotic infections, and it is feared in Japan as an imported mycosis. We were given 'Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research' from the Japanease Education Ministry for studying the fungus and the disease for 2 years. The results obtained are as follows:1. We clarified the morphology, growth rate and thermotolerance of the fungus. In addition, we succeeded in differentiating C.immitis from Malbranchea.2. The morphological conversion of C.immitis in vivo was observed using the agar-implantation method. As a result, the method is a useful for the demonstration of spherules of C.immitis.3. The process involved in the in vivo conversion of the arthroconidia of C.immitis into endosporulating spherules was studied with the aid of a scanning electron microscope. Due to this observation, the parasitic cycle of C.immitis in vivo was clarified in detail.4. The tissue responses against C.immitis infection were investigated histopathologically. The tissue responses closely related to the developmental stages of spherules. The responses against arthroconidia were verey weak so that the arthroconidia inoculated into mice survived in the tissue. The histopathological features against young spherules (endospores) were a marked purulent inflammatory reaction and those against mature spherules, a granulomatous inflammatory one.5. We succeeded in diagnosing a patient with coccidioidomycosis who recently had returned from the United States.