penicillium glaucum

Penicillium glaucum is a species of filamentous fungus (mold) that is clinically utilized as an allergen extract for the diagnosis of type I hypersensitivity reactions. Historically, it is renowned for its role in Louis Pasteur's 1860 discovery of molecular chirality, where he observed the fungus's enantioselective metabolism of tartaric acid. It was also the first organism identified to produce citric acid through fermentation. In modern medicine, Penicillium glaucum extracts are employed in diagnostic procedures such as skin prick testing and allergen-specific IgE blood assays (e.g., RAST) to identify sensitization in patients presenting with allergic rhinitis, asthma, or hypersensitivity pneumonitis. While historical research in the mid-20th century investigated its potential antibiotic properties, it is not used as a therapeutic anti-infective in contemporary clinical practice.

Other names

Penicillium glaucumP. glaucum