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Introduction: Dermatophytosis is one of the most prevalent cutaneous mycosis and a public health problem in West Bengal as well as in India. Its footprint spans far and wide across urban and rural Bengal, with a distribution that is determined by a multitude of factors like geography, environmental conditions, hygiene and sanitation. Despite its surging incidence, Dermatophytosis in Bengal remains a seldom studied topic. Aim: The present study was undertaken to assess the burden of dermatophytosis by clinico-mycological evaluation using standard laboratory protocol and its correlation with clinical parameters. Material and Methods: A cross sectional and observational study was conducted in 100 clinically diagnosed patients of dermatophytosis of skin attending the dermatology outpatient department of our tertiary care hospital. Skin scrapings, were collected from the active margins of the obvious new lesions and processed in the Mycology laboratory following standard protocol. All specimens were screened for presence of dermatophytes by direct microscopy using KOH DMSO preparation and were confirmed by fungal culture. Results: Among all clinical types, Tinea corporis (58.0%) was the predominant clinical condition. Males were affected more (60.0%) than females. The predominantly affected age group was found to be 21- 30 years (35.0%) followed by 31-40 years (24.0%). Fungi were demonstrated in 72.0% cases by direct microscopy in KOH mount while 51.0% cases were found as culture positive. However 02.0% cases were KOH negative but culture positive. Microsporum audouinii (20.0%) was the predominant species identified followed by Trichophyton rubrum (10%). Some rare species like Microsporum persicolor, Microsporum distortum, Microsporum fulvum were also isolated in our study which are rarely documented in the literature till date. Conclusions: In our study, males in the age group 21-40 years were most commonly affected. Tinea corporis was found to be the most common clinic

Clinical and mycological features of onychomycosis show variation with time and place. Onychomycosis is a major public health problem with high incidence, associated morbidity and long lasting treatment with anti-fungal agents. A study was carried out on 118 patients having clinical diagnosis of onychomycosis, attending the dermatology out-patient department of R. G. Kar Medical College, Kolkata. Nail clippings were subjected to direct microscopy and cultured on Sabouraud's Dextrose Agar with antibiotics. The commonest age group affected was 21-40 years with a female preponderance and housewives were most commonly affected group. Finger nail involvement were more frequent and distolateral subungal onychomycosis (DLSO) was the most common clinical type observed . Out of 118 cases total KOH positivity was in 72 (61.01%) and culture positivity was in 62 (52.54%). Total culture positive cases were 62 and total number of fungi identified were 66 as dual pathogen had been identified in four cases . Among 66 culture positive isolates dermatophytes were 30 ( 45.55%), candida 21(31.82%) and non-dermatophyte moulds (NDM) 15 ( 22.73%) . T. rubrum was the commonest etiological agent. Among dermatophytes, Trichophyton rubrum, and among NDM, Fusarium moniliforme, were the most common isolates identified in our study.

Candida albicans is found frequently as a commensal organism in the gastrointestinal tract. Despite this, it is rarely found in pancreatic abscesses, there being only a few cases in the literature and in most of these cases the significance of Candida spp. as a pathogen was not initially recognized at the time of diagnosis. In most of the earlier reported pancreatitis associated with candida, C. albicans was the commonest isolate. We report the case of a patient in whom computed tomography was used initially to diagnose a pancreatic abscess, aspiration of which showed growth of Candida tropicalis and Escherichia coli on culture. The patient was started on amphotericin B and imipenem, but the condition of the patient deteriorated, for which the patient underwent surgical necrosectomy and continued treatment with imipenem and amphotericin B led to the satisfactory recovery of the patient.

BNIP3 (formerly NIP3) is a pro-apoptotic, mitochondrial protein classified in the Bcl-2 family based on limited sequence homology to the Bcl-2 homology 3 (BH3) domain and COOH-terminal transmembrane (TM) domain. BNIP3 expressed in yeast and mammalian cells interacts with survival promoting proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-X(L), and CED-9. Typically, the BH3 domain of pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 homologues mediates Bcl-2/Bcl-X(L) heterodimerization and confers pro-apoptotic activity. Deletion mapping of BNIP3 excluded its BH3-like domain and identified the NH(2) terminus (residues 1-49) and TM domain as critical for Bcl-2 heterodimerization, and either region was sufficient for Bcl-X(L) interaction. Additionally, the removal of the BH3-like domain in BNIP3 did not diminish its killing activity. The TM domain of BNIP3 is critical for homodimerization, pro-apoptotic function, and mitochondrial targeting. Several TM domain mutants were found to disrupt SDS-resistant BNIP3 homodimerization but did not interfere with its killing activity or mitochondrial localization. Substitution of the BNIP3 TM domain with that of cytochrome b(5) directed protein expression to nonmitochondrial sites and still promoted apoptosis and heterodimerization with Bcl-2 and Bcl-X(L). We propose that BNIP3 represents a subfamily of Bcl-2-related proteins that functions without a typical BH3 domain to regulate apoptosis from both mitochondrial and nonmitochondrial sites by selective Bcl-2/Bcl-X(L) interactions.

Fusraium is a non-dermatophytic hyaline mould found as soil saprophytes and plant pathogens. Human infections are probably a result of various precipitating predisposing factors of impaired immune status. Immunocompetent individuals of older age group are also vulnerable to various unassuming saprophytic and plant pathogen. We report 5 cases with onychomycosis caused by a rare species of Fusarium , namely, Fusarium dimerum . Fusarium is known to cause a variety of infections like keratitis, eumycetoma, onychomycosis, skin lesions and sometimes disseminated infection in individuals with impaired immunity. Hence it is of utmost importance to identify this newly emerging fungal pathogen correctly and institute appropriate treatment to control human infections at the earliest so that disseminated infections can be avoided.

We have studied ceBNIP3, the orthologue of BNIP3 in C. elegans. Sequence analysis reveals that the different domains of BNIP3 have been conserved throughout evolution. ceBNIP3 contains a C-terminal transmembrane (TM) domain, a conserved domain (CD) of 19 amino acids, a BCL-2 homology-3 (BH3)-like domain and a PEST sequence. ceBNIP3 is expressed primarily as a 25 kDa monomer and a 50 kDa homodimer. After transfection, ceBNIP3 protein is rapidly degraded through a ubiquitin-dependent pathway by the proteasome. Like BNIP3, the TM domain of ceBNIP3 mediates the localization of the protein to mitochondria and is also necessary for homodimerization and cell death in mammalian cells. Neither the putative BH3 domain nor conserved domain is necessary for killing. ceBNIP3 protein interacts with CED-9 and BCL-XL, but unlike other pro-apoptotic BCL-2 family members, the BH3-like domain does not participate in dimerization. The ceBNIP3 TM domain mediates interaction with both CED-9 and BCL-XL. ceBNIP3 interacts with CED-3 but co-expression of CED-3 and ceBNIP3 does not significantly enhance induction of cell death in the presence or absence of CED-4. ceBNIP3 kills mammalian cells by a caspase-independent mechanism. In conclusion, we find that although ceBNIP3 interacts with CED-9 and CED-3 it kills by a BH3- and caspase-independent mechanism.