Extended-panel species

Aspergillus puniceus

Section Usti Aspergillus offered on extended panels. Limited indoor mycology literature; soil and decaying plant substrates dominate.

Extended panel
Minimum Aw
–
EPA reference (GM)
< 0.4 SE/mgMeklin AHHS threshold
Mycotoxin profile
3+ documented
Ecological role
Variable

The < 0.4 SE/mg reference value is Meklin 2004's AHHS exclusion threshold: the paper retained species whose geometric mean was at least 2 spores per 5 mg dust (≈ 0.4 spores/mg) and eliminated the rest. This species was measured across the 1,096-home AHHS sample and characterized below that threshold, used here as a conservative ceiling on its true GM, not a percentile band. A detected value of X SE/mg implies an elevation factor of at least X ÷ 0.4 over the EPA reference, a lower bound, since the true GM is below 0.4. See the 82-species story for the math.

Note on cardinal Aw: No species-specific value measured. A. puniceus is in section Usti (Houbraken et al. 2007), not the xerophilic section Cremei it was historically grouped with. Estimated min Aw ≈ 0.78–0.80 by analogy with mesophilic subgenus Nidulantes relatives (e.g. A. versicolor, min ~0.78–0.80, Pitt and Hocking).

About Aspergillus puniceus

Aspergillus puniceus is a pigmented Aspergillus in section Usti (subgenus Nidulantes), offered on EnviroBiomics's ERMI Plus add-on menu. Indoor mycology literature on the species is thin; most isolations are from soil and decaying plant material, with the most chemically characterized strains from marine/deep-sea environments.

Taxonomy

Ascomycota → Eurotiomycetes → Eurotiales → Aspergillaceae → Aspergillus subgenus Nidulantes, section Usti (Houbraken et al. 2007; the species was historically grouped in the A. cremeus series before molecular revision)

Ecology and habitat

A. puniceus occurs in soil and on decaying plant substrates globally. The epithet puniceus (Latin: reddish/purple) refers to the characteristic colored colonies, though the specific pigment chemistry varies across isolates and is not as well-characterized as in A. terreus or section Nigri Aspergilli. Indoor isolates are uncommon and the species's building-mycology profile is not well-developed in the literature.

Indoor relevance

Indoor relevance is limited. Detection on a residential ERMI extended panel is unusual and the species's diagnostic role is unclear. Its inclusion on extended lab menus is principally for taxonomic completeness within section Usti, the same section as A. ustus, a common indoor mold on the standard ERMI panel.

Cardinal physiology

No species-specific cardinal Aw has been measured for A. puniceus. The species sits in section Usti (subgenus Nidulantes; Houbraken et al. 2007), a mesophilic, moderately-xerotolerant guild, not the xerophilic section Cremei it was historically lumped with, so the estimate anchors higher than a Cremei analogy would suggest. Minimum Aw is estimated near 0.78–0.80 by analogy with A. versicolor (a subgenus Nidulantes relative with a published minimum Aw ~0.78–0.80; Pitt and Hocking). The one published cardinal for the species itself is a temperature ceiling. It does not grow at 37 °C (Houbraken et al. 2007), consistent with a mesophilic guild. Treat the Aw figures as estimates.

Secondary metabolites

A. puniceus's most chemically characterized isolates are from marine/deep-sea environments and produce asperpropanols A–D (phenolic metabolites with anti-inflammatory bioactivity) and diketopiperazine-type alkaloids including oxepinamides H–K and puniceloids A–D. The terrestrial / indoor-isolate metabolite profile is less well-characterized, and the species is not a documented significant indoor mycotoxin concern. Its inclusion on extended panels is principally for taxonomic completeness within section Usti.

Compounds documented as produced by Aspergillus puniceus (presence and quantity vary by chemotype, strain, and substrate):

Phenolic metabolites (asperpropanols A-D, marine isolates)Diketopiperazine-type alkaloids (oxepinamides, puniceloids)Pigments (compound class characterized variably across isolates)

DNA-based detection of a mycotoxin-producing species in household dust does not directly establish exposure to that mycotoxin at any specific concentration.

Lab availability

Some commercial dust testing labs offer this species as an extended-panel option. Specific lab coverage changes over time: check with your laboratory for current panel options.

Related

Beyond the 36

References

  1. Meklin T, Haugland RA, Reponen T, Varma M, Lummus Z, Bernstein D, Wymer LJ, Vesper SJ. Quantitative PCR analysis of house dust can reveal abnormal mold conditions. J Environ Monit. 2004;6(7):615–620.
  2. Pitt JI, Hocking AD. Fungi and Food Spoilage. 3rd ed. New York: Springer; 2009.