366 Microbes and You 



name of the tissue or organ affected. For example, a skin infection 

 is called a dermatomycosis, while an otomycosis is an ear infec- 

 tion, and a pneumonomycosis is a fungus invasion of the lungs. 

 In other instances the suffix mycosis is added to the name of the 

 etiological agent, as in coccroioiDOMYCOSis. 



DERMATOMYCOSIS 

 The most common fungus diseases are dermatomycoses, pop- 

 ularly referred to as "ringworm." So-called "athlete's foot" is un- 

 doubtedly the most prevalent fungus disease in the United States, 

 and it is caused by the genus Trichophyton, although the genus 



Fig. 63. Lesions of ringworm, a fungus disease. {From The 

 Biology of Bacteria, A. T. Henrici and E. J. Ordal, 3rd ed. Copyright 

 1948, D. C. Heath and Company, New York.) 



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