The CLIA and CAP-accredited UAB Fungal Reference Lab (FRL) was established in 1995 to provide laboratory services to patients at UAB Hospitals and support Mycoses Study Group (MSG) clinical research trials. Stephen Moser, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, a true pioneer in the laboratory diagnosis of yeast and mold infections, founded the lab. In 2018, FRL directorship transitioned to Sixto M. Leal Jr. M.D., Ph.D. Under his leadership, the FRL continues to offer high-quality diagnostic testing for fungal infections but has also expanded its scope to include the full spectrum of infectious diseases including bacteriology, virology, mycobacteriology, and parasitology. This is due, in part, to the lab’s critical and timely diagnostic and sequencing efforts to mitigate the COVID pandemic as the 1st lab in the region to establish SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing and viral genome sequencing. The FRL’s efficient and critical response to the 2022 Monkeypox outbreak and ongoing spread of Candida auris coupled with Leal’s appointment as the Director of UAB’s BSL-3 Research Facility (SEBLAB) further solidified the lab’s key role in the diagnostic frontline of emerging microbial threats.
The FRL’s broad scientific training, resources, and skill sets enable the development and implementation of customized microbiology solutions and the provision of critical clinical microbiology expertise to support a wide variety of clinical, translational, and basic science infectious disease research. Services Include Microbial Culture, Drug Susceptibility Testing, Antigen Testing, Serology, Molecular Identification and Quantification, Sequencing, Histopathology Consultation, Digital Slide Scanning, and Leukocyte Activation Assays for Clinical Trials, Industry, and Patient Care. All testing is performed by licensed medical technologists. Additional expertise in medical mycology and the treatment of infectious diseases is provided by world expert clinical consultants: Todd McCarty, M.D., and Peter Pappas, M.D.
