Dynamics of human respiratory system mycoflora

The study aimed at determing the prevalence of individual species of fungi in the respiratory systems of women and men, analysis of the dynamics of the fungi in individual sections of the respiratory system as concerns their quantity and identification of phenology of the isolated fungi coupled with an attempt at identifying their possible preferences for appearing during specific seasons of thc year. During 10 years of studies (1989- 1998). 29 species of fungi belonging: <i>Candida, Geolrichum, Saccharomyces, Saccharomycopsis, Schizosaccharomyces, Torulopsis, Trichosporon</i> and <i>Aspergillus</i> were isolated from the ontocenoses of the respiratory systems of patients at the Independent Public Center for Pulmonology and Oncology in Olsztyn. <i>Candida albicans</i> was a clearly dominating fungus. Individual species appeared individually, in twos or threes in a single patient, they were isolated more frequently in the spring and autumn, less frequently during the winter and summer. The largest number of fungi species were isolated from sputum (29 species), bronchoscopic material (23 species) and pharyngeal swabs (15 species). <i>Sacchoromycopsis capsularis</i> and <i>Trichosporon beigelii</i> should be treated as new for the respiratory system. Biodiversity of fungi, their numbers and continous fluctuations in frequency indicate that the respiratory system ontocenose offers the optimum conditions for growth and development of the majority of the majority of yeasts - like fungi.