Master Mucor and Rhizopus with Picmonic for Medicine

Mucor and rhizopus are both fungi.

These fungi form non-septate hyphae that are irregularly wide, which can help identify the organisms.

These fungi branch at wide angles over 90 degrees, which can help differentiate these organisms from Aspergillus, which branch at acute angles.

Leukemic patients are at high risk for mucormycosis because white blood cells have a key role in killing the fungi during an infection.

Individuals with diabetic ketoacidosis are at increased risk for mucormycosis, especially with spread from the nasal sinuses to the orbit and brain. People with diabetic ketoacidosis are at increased risk because the organism proliferates in environments with excess ketones and glucose.

Individuals with diabetic ketoacidosis are at increased risk for mucormycosis, especially with spread from the nasal sinuses to the orbit and brain. People with diabetic ketoacidosis are at increased risk because the organism proliferates in environments with excess ketones and glucose.

The fungus can spread from the nasal sinuses to the orbit and penetrate the cribriform plate into the brain, giving rise to rhinocerebral mucormycosis. Inside the brain, the organisms can form abscesses in the frontal lobe or cause cerebral infarction if the fungi invades arteries and produces thrombosis.

The fungus can spread from the nasal sinuses to the orbit and penetrate the cribriform plate into the brain, giving rise to rhinocerebral mucormycosis.

Invasion into the vascular network can cause local tissue necrosis causing a characteristic black necrotic eschar on the face. An eschar is a piece of dead tissue that sloughs off the skin.