This is an interactive key for the identification of all filamentous fungi that are of medical significance. It treats all species that are described in the Atlas of Clinical Fungi (De Hoog et al., eds.), except the genera Aspergillus and Penicillium (see specialized website for the species of Penicillium subgen. Penicillium; see also Aspergillus and Penicillium for a mixed database on both genera). Yeast genera/species are also excluded since they already have a dedicated website.

As the medically important fungi are dispersed over the whole kingdom of fungi and are vary variable in their aspects and characters, the key contains many different characters. However, in a single fungus, only a small portion of the characters are applicable.

A description of terms is provided in the Atlas.

For further information about the species, especially illustrations, one can consult the afore-mentioned Atlas or other literature. It's also possible to click on the species hyperlinks to Mycobank to view the available pictures and some additional associated data.

The key uses morphological characters that are visible in a culture on agar. However, if observations are made directly on clinical material, most characters will be comparable. Sequences can also be used. Sequences were imported from Genbank at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. The link between sequences and species names was performed automatically. This linking was not corrected/checked manually.

Final remark: many of the species treated are not restricted to the human body, and in general, many moulds that are common in soil or on decaying wood or other substrates are included, as they have occasionally be found as pathogens. Therefore, the key can also be used in a wider context.