WHO fungal priority pathogens list

WHO fungal priority pathogens list:
challenges in diagnosis and management

3 November 2025

11.00 - 12.30 CET

This joint ISAC/ESCMID webinar explores the critical challenges posed by fungal infections, as highlighted in the WHO Fungal Priority Pathogen List. It features expert insights into the global burden and clinical impact of fungal pathogens.
Prof. Cornelia Lass-Flörl provides an overview of the priority pathogens identified by WHO, while Prof. Sevtap Arikan Akdagli discusses the growing threat of azole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus in both clinical and environmental settings, emphasising the need for effective screening and containment strategies.
Prof. Anuradha Chowdhary addresses the emergence and spread of antifungal resistance in Candida species, underscoring the urgent need for improved diagnostics and management approaches.

Speaker bios

Cornelia Lass-Flörl - Overview of the fungal priority pathogens

Cornelia Lass-Flörl is the Director of the Institute of Hygiene and Medical Microbiology of the Department of Hygiene, Microbiology and Virology at the Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria.
She has specialised in the field of medical microbiology since graduating from the Faculty of Medicine at Leopold-Franzens-University of Innsbruck in 1986. She is Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, of the European Confederation of Medical Mycology and of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
Professor Lass-Flörl has authored several journal articles, abstracts, and book chapters. In 2020, 2022 and 2023 she was placed on Clarivate Analytics’ list of highly cited researchers worldwide.
Her teaching and clinical service responsibilities focus on the diagnosis of fungal infections in severely immunocompromised patients, with special interests in the epidemiology, diagnosis, prevention and therapy of fungal infections.
In addition, Professor Lass-Flörl’s work includes antifungal susceptibility testing and the interaction of fungi and platelets.
She is an esteemed member of the sub-committee on Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) and the European Committee for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) and was chair of the executive board of the European Fungal Infection Study Group (EFISG).
She was Chair of the European Confederation of Medical Mycology (ECMM) Subcommittee for the Evaluation of ECMM Excellence Centers.

Sevtap Arikan-Akdagl - Azole resistant Aspergillus fumigatus in clinics and environment: from screening to containment policy

Prof. Sevtap Arikan-Akdagli, MD is the Director of the Mycology Laboratory at Department of Medical Microbiology of Hacettepe University Medical School, Ankara, Turkey.
She received her MD and Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology specialist degree from the same university and completed a research fellowship in Division of Infectious Diseases, Center for Emerging and Remerging Pathogens, Mycology Research Laboratory at University of Texas Medical School, Houston, Texas, USA.
She is currently the Secretary of European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) Fungal Infection Study Group (EFISG) and a member of the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) Subcommittee on Antifungal Susceptibility Testing (AFST).
She is the ECMM delegate for and founding member of Turkish Society of Medical Mycology. Sevtap Arikan-Akdagli currently serves on the Programme Committee of ECCMID (European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases – 2016 and 2017) and TIMM (Trends in Medical Mycology – 2017).
Prof. Arikan-Akdagli is the Editor of Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, a member of the Scientific Committee (Mycology) of Clinical Microbiology and Infection and a reviewer for numerous medical scientific journals.
Her current research and publications focus on novel antifungal drugs, antifungal susceptibility testing, antifungal resistance, and laboratory diagnosis of invasive fungal infections.

Anuradha Chowdhary - Emergence of the spread of resistance in Candida species

Prof. Anuradha Chowdhary is a Professor of Medical Mycology at the Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute, University of Delhi, India.
She is currently the Secretary General of ISAC.
Her research focuses on antifungal resistance, molecular typing and epidemiology of emerging pathogenic fungi. Dr Chowdhary’s latest research concerns the understanding of the emergence of multidrug resistant strains of Candida auris. This yeast which has globally emerged as a nosocomial pathogen is a serious therapeutic challenge and similar geographical clonal strains of C. auris are emerging in other countries. Her research has additionally yielded important insights into the ecological niches of Cryptococcus and the mechanism and spread of multi azole resistant Aspergillus fumigatus.
Prof. Chowdhary has over 200 publications in peer-reviewed international and national journals and is a Fellow of several prestigious organisations including being a member of the ESCMID Global Scientific Programme Committee.

MODERATORS

Dr Abhijit Bal is a Consultant, Head of Service and Infection Control Doctor at the Department of Microbiology, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow. He is also a Honorary Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Glasgow. Prior to this, he was a Consultant Microbiologist (NHS Ayrshire and Arran) and Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer.
Dr Bal is the Chair of the ISAC Fungal Infections Working Group. Additionally, he was chair of the Fungal Infections Subgroup within the Scottish Microbiology and Virology Network.

Prof. Maurizio Sanguinetti is a distinguished microbiologist and Full Professor at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Rome. He serves as Director of the Institute of Microbiology, the Division of Clinical Microbiology at A. Gemelli Hospital, and the Department of Laboratory Sciences and Infectious Diseases at the Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli.
With a medical degree and specialisation in microbiology and virology from the same university, his career spans leadership roles in clinical microbiology and academic research. He has held prominent positions in European and Italian microbiology societies, including serving as President of ESCMID.
His editorial contributions include work with major journals such as Scientific Reports, Frontiers in Microbiology, and Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. Professor Sanguinetti has authored nearly 300 publications, with a high h-index reflecting his impact in the field. His research focuses on rapid diagnostics, antimicrobial resistance, fungal pathogens, and the human microbiota’s role in disease.