Finally, they had tissue necrosis, which caused deterioration of the epidermis, connective tissue, heart, hepatopancreas, nervous system, and gills. In severe cases, there was congestion of hemal sinuses, two principal empty areas along the digestive tube and vessels. Mass amounts of yeast-like cells compressed nerve fibers and the gill lamellae were destroyed. Mollusks clinical signs vary from scattered spots of brownish discoloration on the mantle tissues to general deterioration of mussel condition. In severe cases, there were black-bodied mussels with a distinct odor and black yeast-cells infected the connective tissues around the gonads and the digestive tract. Cold-blooded vertebrates
Cold-blooded vertebrates exhibited an assortment of clinical signs. Amphibians showed signs of anorexia. Ulcers or nodules in the skin were found, as well as swelling and lesions of internal organs, including the spleen, liver, and kidney. In extreme cases, neurological disorders and multifocal dermatitis (swelling caused by irritation of the fungus) occurred. Fish demonstrated signs of lethargy and disoriented swimming. There were ulcerative lesions, multiple dark foci in the gills, and non-ulcerative dermal masses found. In critical cases, some fish showed a variety of inflammatory responses including the formation of microabscesses. Lesions in the brain and kidneys were also found. These fish had abnormal swimming behavior, bulging eyes, and abdominal swelling. Warm-blooded vertebrates
From birds to equines, Phaeohyphomycosis persists and has a massive range of clinical signs throughout differing species. Poultry and wild birds had neurological disorders and a loss of movement control.
Antifungal drugs are the first line of defense to kill the agents causing phaeohyphomycosis, but despite the significant progress made in the last two decades and a 30% increase in available antifungal drugs since 2000, many drugs are not effective against black fungi. Diseases caused by black fungi are hard to treat because the fungi are very difficult to kill. This high resilience may be contributed to the presence of melanin in their cell walls, as well as the greater similarity to host cells which are both eukaryotes than other pathogens such as bacteria or viruses. Current antifungal agents the fungi are not resistant to are posaconazole, voriconazole, and azole isavuconazole.In 2006, a free-living Eastern box turtle, Terrapene carolina carolina, was found with a form of phaeohyphomycosis and was brought in the Wildlife Center of Virginia. Its symptom was swelling of the right hindfoot; it was diagnosed as having chromomycosis by histopathology. The center provided a series of antimicrobial treatments and a one-month course of 1 mg itraconazole, administered orally once a day. The eastern box turtle was euthanized due to further complications and the caretakers’ belief that the turtle would not be able to survive if placed back in the wild. A recent case of a form of phaeohyphomycosis infection was found in a dog in 2011. The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association published a case study in which researchers successfully managed an intracranial phaeohyphomycotic fungal granuloma in a one-year-old male Boxer dog.