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Identification Of Potentially Pathogenic Yeast Species In Seagull Guano By Molecular Techniques, Tobias L. Banks

Honors Theses

Although studies have been performed identifying bacteria present in seagull guano, limited studies have been done with fungi, leaving a significant gap in our knowledge of a potentially significant reservoir of human disease. If pathogenic fungi are being deposited by seagulls in their feces then it is possible that the Department of Health might elect to monitor sand, as well as water, for a broad spectrum of disease-causing microbes. Currently only water is tested for the presence of coliform bacteria. It is hypothesized that there are pathogenic yeast-like fungi present in the guano of seagulls, that these fungi are deposited …