Abstract
Tropical coastal regions, despite being major tourist destinations, remain underexplored in terms of their role as potential reservoirs of opportunistic fungal pathogens, particularly those listed on the WHO Fungal Priority Pathogens List (FPPL). This case study presents the first integrative molecular and culture-based assessment of fungal communities in beach sand from three sites along the coastline of Prachuap Khiri Khan, Thailand. Using ITS metabarcoding and culture-based methods, we characterized fungal diversity, detected taxa from genera that include FPPL-listed species, and assessed antifungal susceptibility. The results indicated differences in beta diversity among sites; environmental variables showed directional influence on community variation, with temperature significantly associated with the observed patterns, while moisture was not statistically significant. The urban adjacent SON site exhibited a higher prevalence of FUNGuild predicted opportunistic pathogens, while the more remote DSN site showed fewer. Five of the thirteen isolated fungi exhibited elevated minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) against azoles and flucytosine, isolates affiliated with Aspergillus section Terrei, which also showed genetic similarity to clinical strains. These findings suggest that recreational beaches may act as potential environmental reservoirs of opportunistic and antifungal-resistant fungi. However, only Fusarium neocosmosporiellum TPS1-10, a high-priority FPPL pathogen, was successfully isolated among taxa detected by ITS metabarcoding, and it did not exhibit elevated MIC values. Overall, these results highlight the need for routine fungal monitoring in recreational beach environments, in accordance with WHO guidelines, particularly in the context of increasing antifungal use, climate change, and growing beach tourism.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Dr. Chawatat Thanoosing from the Department of Biology, Chulalongkorn University, for his valuable assistance and insightful suggestions on haplotype analysis for investigating intraspecies variation in antifungal-resistant fungal strains. We also extend our appreciation to Yuki Hayashi from Osaka University for her support during the sampling and metabarcoding sequencing process as part of her exchange program.
Funding
This research is funded by FAILSAFE (FR1-23) with funds provided by the UK department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) as part of the Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF). This is a One Health UK aid fund that supports research and development around the world to reduce the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans, animals and the environment for the benefit of people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the UK DHSC. This work (Grant No. RGNS 65 − 005) was financially supported by the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (TSRI). Computations were performed using the computer clusters and data storage resources of the HPCC, which were funded by grants from NSF (MRI-2215705, MRI-1429826) and NIH (1S10OD016290-01A1).
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Ibrahim, S.N.M.M., Lakmuang, C., Kaewjon, T. et al. Opportunistic fungi in tropical beaches: Diversity, WHO fungal priority pathogens, and antifungal resistance case study.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-55443-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-55443-7
Keywords
- WHO FPPL
- Opportunistic pathogens
- Diversity
- Antifungal resistance
- Fungal community structure
- Beach reservoirs
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