Phytophthora ramorum
Detection of "P. ramorum" in watercourses has emerged as the earliest of early detection methods. This technique employs pear or rhododendron baits suspended in the watercourse using ropes, buckets, mesh bags, or other similar devices. If plants in the watershed are infected with "P. ramorum", zoospores of the pathogen (as well as other "Phytophthora" spp.) are likely present in adjacent waterways. Under conducive weather conditions, the zoospores are attracted to the baits and infect them, causing lesions that can be isolated to culture the pathogen or analyzed via PCR assay. This method has detected "P. ramorum" at scales ranging from small, intermittent seasonal drainages to the Garcia, Chetco, and South Fork Eel Rivers in California and Oregon (144, 352, and 689 mi2 drainage areas, respectively). It can detect the existence of infected plants in watersheds before any mortality from the infections becomes evident. Of course, it cannot detect the exact locations of those infected plants: at the first sign of "P. ramorum" propagules in the stream, crews must scour the watershed using all available means to find symptomatic vegetation.
Trichophyton tonsurans
Treatment options include antifungal shampoo, systemic antifungals, or both. Oral therapy is indicated for complicated infections of those that fail to respond to topical treatment. Still, the use of selenium sulphide or povidone-iodine shampoos greatly reduce fungal viability and may be helpful in person-to-person transmission. Advancements have been made in detection of "T. tonsurans" in patients with Tinea capitis, using TaqMan PCR assay and primers and probes designed to detect this fungus rapidly and specifically, excluding contaminating skin microorganisms.