Using genome sequencing, researchers found that this fungus is routinely misidentified as another fungal species, potentially masking its true impact on public health. The paper, “Triazole Resistance and Misidentification of Aspergillus tubingensis in Southern California,” is published in JAMA Network Open.

“We were expecting most of these infections to be caused by Aspergillus niger,” said Lance B. Price, senior author of the study, professor of environmental and occupational health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and visiting scholar at Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen.

“But the DNA sequencing data showed that the vast majority were actually Aspergillus tubingensis—a potentially more dangerous species that had been flying under the radar.”