Pneumocystis murina is a species of fungus, first isolated from laboratory mice, hence its name.. Pneumocystis murina is a species of fungi belonging to the genus Pneumocystis, characterized by its unique cyst-like multinucleate morphology and association with the respiratory tract of mammals.Keely, S. P., Stringer, J. R., Baughman, R. P., Linke, M. J., Walzer, P. D., & Smulian, A. G. (2005). Genetic variation among Pneumocystis carinii hominis isolates in recurrent pneumocystosis. The Journal of infectious diseases, 192(7), 1261-1269. P. murina is particularly notable for its exclusive infection of laboratory mice and its role as an important model for studying human diseases, specifically Pneumocystis jirovecii infections in immunocompromised patients.Cushion, M. T., & Stringer, J. R. (2010). Stealth and opportunism: alternative lifestyles of species in the fungal genus Pneumocystis. Annual Review of Microbiology, 64, 431-452. Pneumocystis murina was first phylogenetically identified and described as a distinct species by Keely, S. P., Fischer, J. M., Cushion, M. T., and Stringer, J. R. in 2012.Keely, S. P., Fischer, J. M., Cushion, M. T., & Stringer, J. R. (2012). Phylogenetic identification of Pneumocystis murina sp. nov., a new species in laboratory mice. Microbiology, 158(Pt 10), 2457-2466.
