DOI: 10.17151/bccm.2025.29.2.12
How to Cite
Cardona Avila, J. D. (2025). Controlling massive fungal proliferation in a scientific reference zoological collection. Boletín Científico. Centro De Museos, 29(2), 233–254. https://doi.org/10.17151/bccm.2025.29.2.12

Authors

Juan David Cardona Avila
Universidad ICESI 
juancardona2501@outlook.com
https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9501-3184
Perfil Google Scholar

Abstract

This study focused on controlling a fungal infestation in the zoological collection at the Departmental Museum of Natural Sciences in Cali. This infestation was caused by inadequate conservation facilities for specimens and the absence of a quarantine zone. Sixty-eight infected specimens and eight environmental samples were collected in order to characterise and purify the predominant morphotypes. Ten of these samples showed growth in the laboratory, enabling the isolation of 17 colonies, which were then grouped into 15 morphotypes. Three of these morphotypes — identified as Peniophora albobadia, Aspergillus sydowii and Penicillium commune — were selected for sensitivity testing. Five commercial disinfectants (Timsen 2125M P40®, Simple Green D Pro 5®, Divosan Forte VT6, KlaxinnTabs DETCLORK 500 and Pentamon) were evaluated at four concentrations (0.2%, 0.4%, 0.6% and 0.8%) in duplicate. Although KlaxinnTabs DETCLORK 500 at 0.8% showed the best in vitro performance, it was impractical to use; therefore, Simple Green D Pro 5® was chosen. This reduced the environmental microbial load by 40% and decreased the number of positive surface samples from 6 to 2. These results suggest promising potential for controlling the infestation. This could be further improved by employing a spray application of KlaxinnTabs DETCLORK 500 and implementing a quarantine zone for infected specimens.

Alker, A. P., Smith, G. W., y Kim, K. (2001). Characterization of Aspergillus sydowii (Thom et Church), a fungal pathogen of Caribbean sea fan corals. Hydrobiologia, 460, 105–111. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013145524136

Bika, R., Copes, W., y Baysal-Gurel, F. (2021). Comparative performance of sanitizers in managing plant-to-plant transfer and postharvest infection of Calonectria pseudonaviculata and Pseudonectria foliicola. Plant Disease, 105(10), 2809–2821. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-03-21-0481-RE

Choi, Y.-H., Huh, D.-A., Lee, J.-Y., Choi, J. Y., y Moon, K. W. (2021). Verification and optimization of an ultra-low volume (ULV) sprayer used for the inactivation of indoor total bacteria. Applied Sciences, 11(8), 3713. https://doi.org/10.3390/app11083713

Copes, W. E., y Ojiambo, P. S. (2023). A systematic review and quantitative synthesis of the efficacy of quaternary ammonium disinfectants against fungal plant pathogens. Plant Disease, 107(2), 480–492. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-09-21-2018-RE

Cox, C. S., y Wathes, C. M. (1995). Bioaerosols in the environment. En C. S. Cox y C. M. Wathes (Eds.), Bioaerosols Handbook:Sampling, Analysis and Control (pp. 11–14). Lewis Publishers.

De Lima, J. T. M., y de Souza Carvalho, I. (2020). Geological or cultural heritage? The ex situ scientific collections as a remnant of nature and culture. Geoheritage, 12(1), 3. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-020-00448-5252 Juan David Cardona Avila

Delgadillo, I., y Góngora, F. (2009). Colecciones biológicas: estrategias didácticas en la enseñanza-aprendizaje de la biología. Revista Bio-grafía, 2(3), 131-140. https://doi.org/10.17227/20271034.vol.2num.3bio-grafia131.140

De Moraes Borba, C., y Rodrigues, K. F. (2000). Viability and sporulating capability of Coelomycetes preserved under a range of different storage regimes. Revista Iberoamericana de Micología, 17, 142-145. https://www.reviberoammicol.com/2000-17/142145.pdf

Diblasi, L., Arrighi, F., Silva, J., Bardón, A., y Cartagena, E. (2015). Penicillium commune metabolic profile as a promising source of antipathogenic natural products. Natural Product Research, 29(23), 2181–2187. https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2015.1007457

Dilmaçünal, T., y Kuleaşan, H. (2018). Novel strategies for the reduction of microbial degradation of foods. En Mihai Grumezescu, A., y Holban, A.M. (Eds.), Food Safety and Preservation (pp. 481–520). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-814956-0.00016-0

Demjanová, S., Jevinová, P., Pipová, M., y Regecová, I. (2020). Identification of Penicillium verrucosum, Penicillium commune, and Penicillium crustosum isolated from chicken eggs. Processes, 9(1), 53. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9010053

Fernandes, S., Simões, M., Dias, N., Santos, C., y Lima, N. (2012). Fungicidal activity of microbicides. En Fraise, A., Maillard, J.Y., y Sattar, S.A. (Eds.), Russell, Hugo y Ayliffe’s Handbook of Microbiology (pp. 142–154). Wiley-Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118425831.ch7

Gourama, H., y Bullerman, L. B. (1995). Relationship between aflatoxin production and mold growth as measured by ergosterol and plate count. Lebensmittel-Wissenschaft und -Technologie, 28(2), 185–189. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01141329

Guevara-Suarez, M., Sutton, D. A., Cano-Lira, J. F., García, D., Martin-Vicente, A., Wiederhold, N., Guarro, J., y Gené, J. (2016). Identification and antifungal susceptibility of Penicillium-like fungi from clinical samples in the United States. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 54(8), 2155–2161. https://doi.org/10.1128/JCM.00960-16

International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories. (2008). Collection, storage, retrieval and distribution of biological materials for research. Cell Preservation Technology, 6(1), 3–58. https://doi.org/10.1089/cpt.2008.9997

Ibrahim, S., Mohamed, S., Alsaadi, B., Althubyani, M., Awari, Z., Hussein, H., Aljohani, A., Albasri, J., Faraj, S., y Mohamed, G. (2023). Secondary metabolites, biological activities, and industrial and biotechnological importance of Aspergillus sydowii. Marine Drugs, 21(8), 441. https://doi.org/10.3390/md21080441

Jacomé, A. M., y Campos, S. (2022). Digitalización y verificación de la información del orden Chiroptera que reposa en la colección de referencia del Museo de Vertebrados de la Universidad de Panamá [Trabajo de pregrado, Universidad de Panamá]. https://up-rid.up.ac.pa/6390/1/ana_jacome.pdf

Jiménez-Gómez, I., Valdés-Muñoz, G., Moreno-Ulloa, A., Pérez-Llano, Y., Moreno-Perlín, T., Silva-Jiménez, H., Barreto-Curiel, F., Sánchez-Carbente, M. del R., Folch-Mallol, J. L., Gunde-Cimerman, N., Lago-Lestón, A., y Batista-García, R. A. (2022). Surviving in the brine: A multi-omics approach for understanding the physiology of the halophile fungus Aspergillus sydowii at saturated NaCl concentration. Frontiers in Microbiology, 13, 840408. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2022.840408

Keene, S. (2006). Fragments of the world: Uses of museum collections. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780080456416

Kerr, J. R. (1999). Bacterial inhibition of fungal growth and pathogenicity. Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease, 11(3), 129–142.
https://doi.org/10.1080/089106099435709

Ljaljevic-Grbic, M., Stupar, M., Vukojevic, J., Maricic, I., y Bungur, N. (2013). Molds in museum environments: Biodeterioration of art photographs and wooden sculptures. Archives of Biological Sciences, 65(3), 955–962. https://doi.org/10.2298/ABS1303955G

Maggi, O., Tosi, S., Angelova, M., Lagostina, E., Fabbri, A. A., Pecoraro, L., Altobelli, E., Picco, A. M., Savino, E., Branda, E., Turchetti, B., Zotti, M., Vizzini, A., y Buzzini, P. (2013). Adaptation of fungi, including yeasts, to cold environments. Plant Biosystems, 147(1), 247–258. https://doi.org/10.1080/11263504.2012.753135

Meineke, E. K., y Daru, B. H. (2021). Bias assessments to expand research harnessing biological collections. Trends in Ecology y Evolution, 36(12), 1071–1082. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2021.08.003

Nakasone, K. K., Peterson, S. W., y Jong, S.-C. (2004). Preservation and distribution of fungal cultures. En Biodiversity of Fungi: Inventory and Monitoring Methods (pp. 37–47). Elsevier Academic Press. https://research.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/7115

Rose, C. L., Hawks, C. A., y Genoways, H. H. (1995). Storage of natural history collections: A preventive conservation approach. Society for the Preservation of natural History Collections.

Rose, C. L., Hawks, C. A., y Waller, R. (2019). A preventive conservation approach to the storage of collections. En L. Elkin y C. A. Norris (Eds.), Preventive Conservation: Collection Storage (pp. 43-55). Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335682131_A_Preventive_Conservation_Approach_to_the_Storage_of_Collections

Senanayake, I.C, Rathnayaka, AR., Marasinghe, D.S., Calabon, M.S., Gentekaki, E., Lee, H.B., Hurdeal, V.G., Pem, D., Dissanayake, L.S., Wijesingke, S.N., Bundhun, D., Nguyen, T.T., Goonasekara, I.D., Abeywickrama, P.D., Bhunjun, C.S., Jayawardena, R.S., Wanasinghe, D.N., Jeewon, R., Bhat, D.J., y Xiang, M.M. (2020). Morphological approaches in studying fungi: Collection, examination, isolation, sporulation and preservation. Mycosphere, 11(1), 2678–2754. https://doi.org/10.5943/mycosphere/11/1/20

Selbmann, L., Egidi, E., Isola, D., Onofri, S., Zucconi, L., de Hoog, G. S., Chinaglia, S., Testa, L., Tosi, S., Balestrazzi, A., Lantieri, A., Compagno, R., Tigini, V., y Varese, G. C. (2013). Biodiversity, evolution and adaptation of fungi in extreme environments. Plant Biosystems, 147(1), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1080/11263504.2012.753134

Simple Green. (2008). SIMPLE GREEN® D PRO 5 Desinfectante – Limpiador – Antiséptico – Fungicida – Antimoho – Virucida* – Desodorante. Simple Green® d Pro5. 1 Gal. - Simple Green

Siqueira, J. P. Z., Sutton, D. A., García, D., Gené, J., Thomson, P., Wiederhold, N., y Guarro, J. (2016). Species diversity of
Aspergillus section Versicolores in clinical samples and antifungal susceptibility. Fungal Biology, 120(11), 1458–1467. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.funbio.2016.02.006

Speranza, M., Gutiérrez, A., del Río, J. C., Bettucci, L., Martínez, Á. T., y Martínez, M. J. (2009). Sterols and lignin in Eucalyptus globulus wood: Spatial distribution and fungal removal as revealed by microscopy and chemical analyses. Holzforschung, 63(3),362–370. https://doi.org/10.1515/HF.2009.041

Simmons, J. E., y Muñoz-Saba, Y. (2005). Cuidado, manejo y conservación de las colecciones biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Colombia.

Shabbir, A., Khan, M. A., Khan, A. M., y Iqbal, M. (2007). Fungal biodeterioration: A case study in the zoological museum of the Punjab University. Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences, 17(4), 90–92.

Sluys, R. (2021). Attaching names to biological species: The use and value of type specimens in systematic zoology and natural history collections. Biological Theory, 16(1), 49–61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13752-020-00366-3

Strasser, B. J. (2011). The experimenter’s museum: GenBank, natural history, and the moral economies of biomedicine. ISIS, 102(1), 60-96. https://doi.org/10.1086/658657

Takahata, Y., Hiruma, M., Sugita, T., y Muto, M. (2008). A case of onychomycosis due to Aspergillus sydowii diagnosed using DNA sequence analysis. Mycoses, 51(2), 170–173. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0507.2007.01458.x

Tian, J., Wu, B., Chen, H., Jiang, N., Kang, X., y Liu, X. (2017). Patterns and drivers of fungal diversity along an altitudinal gradient on Mount Gongga, China. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 17(12), 2856-2865. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-017-1701-9

Troncozo, M. I., Figoli, C. B., Franco, M. E. E., Mirífico, M. V., Bosch, A., Rajchenberg, M., Balatti, P. A., y Saparrat, M. C. N. (2020). Biotransformation of grape pomace from Vitis labrusca by Peniophora albobadia LPSC #285 (Basidiomycota). Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências, 92(1). https://doi.org/10.1590/0001-3765202020181174

Trujillo-Luna, B. R., y González-Vallejo, N. E. (2006). Equinodermos de la colección de referencia de bentos costero de Ecosur. Universidad y Ciencia, 22(1), 83–88. https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=2108723

Zaitseva, N. (2009). A polysaccharide extracted from Sphagnum moss as an antifungal agent in archaeological conservation [Trabajo de maestría, Queen´s University]. https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/thesescanada/vol2/002/MR65063.PDF?is_thesis=1&oclc_number=808922483

Citations

Crossref
Scopus
Europe PMC
Sistema OJS - Metabiblioteca |