Rhinosporidiosis

Rhinosporidiosis caused by Rhinosporidium seeberii, a protistal microorganism, is endemic in several parts of India. Infection involves mucous membranes of the nose and paranasal sinuses and usually manifests as vascular friable polyps. A few cases of rhinosporidoisis have been reported from Delhi, in patients who were migrants from other states. The present case constitutes the first report of rhinosporidiosis in a Delhi resident; the lesion occurred as polypoidal mass of the palpebral conjunctiva.

No data exists on the activity of biocides (antiseptics and disinfectants) on Rhinosporidium seeberi that causes rhinosporidiosis in humans and animals. On account of the inability to culture R. seeberi, in vitro , dyes were used to assess the morphological integrity and viability of ...

Rhinosporidiosis is a disease caused by Rhinosporidium seeberi which primarily affects the mucosa of the nose, conjunctiva and urethra. While it is endemic in some Asian regions, isolated cases are reported in other parts of the world as a result of the socio-cultural ...

Thirteen African cases of rhinosporidiosis are reported from Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Chad and Zaire. They include the first reported cases from Burundi and from Rwanda and the first African case, outside nose and eye, localized on the urethral orifice in a Zairian male.

Rhinosporidiosis is caused by the organism Rhinosporidium seeberi. It is a rare aquatic protistan parasite. Though more prevalent in Asiatic regions, cases have also been reported in European countries. In India, it mostly affects the southern part. Rhinosporidium seeberi most commonly affects the mucous membranes, but can also affect other structures including the larynx, trachea, skin, genitalia, lungs and rectum. The typical presentation is that of a pinkish mass which bleeds profusely. Isolated lacrimal sac rhinosporidiosis is very rare. Computed tomography scans and magnetic resonance imaging are helpful in diagnosis, but histopathological study along with Gomori methenamine silver, periodic acid-Schiff, and potassium chloride are required for confirmation. Its mainstay of treatment is surgery. Prognosis is excellent, but recurrence is not unusual

Human rhinosporidial tissue was used as the source of the various developmental stages of Rhinosporidium seeberi--endospores with electron dense bodies, juvenile, and immature sporangia. After homogenisation in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) and removal of tissue fragments by centrifugation, the rhinosporidial bodies were isolated on centrifuged Percoll columns with gradients of densities or on triple-layered columns of varying density. The separated bands, after repeated washing in PBS gave bodies free from human tissue as shown on Leishman and PAS staining and indirect immunofluorescence with rabbit and human patients' anti-rhinosporidial sera. Sonicates of these bodies were tested on agarose gel for precipitation with antisera, and on SDS-PAG electrophoresis and Coomassie Blue staining. Percoll columns were shown to be capable of isolating these stages of R. seeberi, free from human tissue and contaminating bacteria.

Three cases of rhinosporidiosis with complications, hitherto not reported, are presented. Frog-faced deformity and seizures were observed in one case, excessive bleeding, loss of olfactory sensation and septal perforation were noticed in the second case, while the third one exhibited a disseminated type of the disease. Clinical findings of these cases are discussed.

Rhinosporidiosis caused by Rhinosporidium seeberii, a protistal microorganism, is endemic in several parts of India. Infection involves mucous membranes of the nose and paranasal sinuses and usually manifests as vascular friable polyps. A few cases of rhinosporidoisis have been reported from Delhi, in patients who were migrants from other states. The present case constitutes the first report of rhinosporidiosis in a Delhi resident; the lesion occurred as polypoidal mass of the palpebral conjunctiva.

Rhinosporidiosis is a chronic granulomatous disorder, caused by Rhinosporidium seeberi endemic in India and Sri Lanka. The most common sites are the nasal mucosa and the nasopharynx and cutaneous lesions usually occur as a part of disseminated rhinosporidiosis. Dapsone has been frequently used in treating disseminated disease in immunocompetent individuals. Here we report a case of disseminated rhinosporidiosis in an immunocompromised individual on antiretroviral drugs, non-responsive to Dapsone and therefore treated with a multidrug therapy of Cycloserine, Dapsone and Ketoconazole with good response.

Studies of Rhinosporidium seeberi have demonstrated that this organism has a complex life cycle in infected tissues. Its in vivo life cycle is initiated with the release of endospores into a host's tissues from its spherical sporangia. However, little is known about the mechanisms of sporangium formation and endospore release since this pathogen is intractable to culture. We have studied the in vitro mechanisms of endospore release from viable R. seeberi's sporangia. It was found that watery substances visibly stimulates the mature sporangia of R. seeberi to the point of endospore discharge. The internal rearrangement of the endospores within the mature sporangia, the opening of an apical pore in R. seeberi's cell wall, and the active release of the endospores were the main features of this process. Only one pore per sporangium was observed. The finding of early stages of pore development in juvenile and intermediate sporangia suggested that its formation is genetically ...