Pseudogymnoascus destructans survival at elevated temperatures - Artificial media count data

The survival of Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd) was evaluated at temperatures outside of its thermal range of growth on three different artificial growth media; Sabouraud dextrose agar (SD), brain-heart infusion agar (BHI), and brain-heart infusion agar supplemented with 10% sheep red blood cells (BHI+B). Pd was harvested from starting cultures grown of MEA agar at 7?C for 60 days. Harvested conidia were diluted in Phosphate Buffered Saline + Tween20 and spread onto plates of a given medium. Plate were then incubated at either 24, 30 or 37 degrees Celsius. Plates were incubated for 1, 5, 9, 15, 30, 60, 90, 120, or 150 days before being transferred to a 7 degree Celsius incubator for 50 days. Colony forming units (CFUs) of Pd were then enumerated, resulting in a time series of Pd survival on a given medium at a given temperature. As each medium was inoculated from a different starting culture of Pd, a control group for each medium was created by inoculating plates as above and then immediate incubation at 7 degrees Celsius for 50 days. The number of CFUs on the control plates was used as a statistical offset factor which allowed for the fair comparison of Pd survival between different media. The number of conidia initially plated onto each plate varied between 100, 1000 , and 10,000, depending on the temperature-medium treatment combination. In order to ensure robust statistical analysis, all data was rescaled by an appropriate correction factor which is also presented in the datafile.