Epidemiological trends in zoophilic and geophilic fungi in Iran

Trends in the epidemiology of dermatophytosis in the Middle East and North Africa region

Dermatophytosis corresponds to a broad series of infections, mostly superficial, caused by a group of keratinophilic and keratinolytic filamentous fungi called dermatophytes. These mycoses are currently considered to be a major public health concern worldwide, particularly in developing countries such as those in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Here we compiled and discussed existing epidemiologic data on these infections in the MENA region. Most of the available studies were based on conventional diagnostic strategies and were published before the last taxonomic revision of dermatophytes. This has led to misidentifications, which might have resulted in the underestimation of the real burden of these infections in the MENA countries. Our analysis of the available literature highlights an urgent need for further studies based on reliable diagnostic tools and standard susceptibility testing methods for dermatophytosis, which represents a major challenge for these countries. This is crucial for guiding appropriate interventions and activating antifungal stewardship programs in the future.

Prevalence and antifungal drug resistance of dermatophytes in the clinical samples from Pakistan

Dermatophytosis is a major health problem all over the world including Pakistan. This is the first report of detection of dermatophytes and their antifungal drug resistance in the Northern and Western parts of Pakistan. A total of 154 samples were collected from different hospitals of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and out of them 136 samples were found positive. Tinea corporis (35%) was the most predominant type of infection followed by Tinea capitis (22%). The fungi identified in Tinea corporis infection types were identified as Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Epidermophyton floccosum. The fungi identified in Tinea capitis included Trichophyton violaceum, T. mentagrophytes, Microsporum ferrugineum. The gender wise distribution showed both males (52%) and females (48%) were infected with the fungi. More cases belonged to the rural parts of the country. Age wise distribution showed that the infection was more prevalent in the children and the prevalence decreased with the increase in age. The positive samples were checked against two antifungal agents: fluconazole and nystatin. Among 136 positive samples, none of the isolates showed resistance to nystatin while 7% of the samples showed resistance to fluconazole. The resistant isolates were then identified by amplifying the 18S rRNA gene, using universal primers (ITS1, ITS4). Among the 9 resistant isolates, 5 isolates were identified as Trichophyton spp., 3 as Microsporum spp. and 1 as Epidermophyton spp.

Occurrence of Trichophyton verrucosum in cattle in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, China

Background

Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region is an important cattle breeding area in China, and cattle breeding bases are located in this area. In Ningxia, dermatophytes have not been paid attention to, so dermatophytosis is becoming more and more serious. For effective control measures, it is important to determine the disease prevalence and isolate and identify the pathogenic microorganism.

Results

The study showed the prevalence of dermatophytes was 15.35% (74/482). The prevalence in calf was higher than adult cattle (p < 0.05). The morbidity was the highest in winter compared with autumn (p < 0.0001), summer (p < 0.05) and spring (p < 0.0001). The prevalence in Guyuan was the highest compared with Yinchuan (p < 0.05) and Shizuishan (p < 0.05). The incidence of lesions on the face, head, neck, trunk and whole body was 20.43, 38.71, 20.43, 10.75 and 9.68%, respectively. From all samples, the isolation rate of Trichophyton was highest (61.1%). The phylogenetic tree constructed showed that the 11 pathogenic fungi were on the same branch as Trichophyton verrucosum.

Conclusions

This study reports, for the first time, the presence of Trichophyton verrucosum in cattle in Ningxia and showed that the incidence of dermatophytosis is related to different regions, ages and seasons. A better knowledge of the prevalence of dermatophytosis of cattle may allow the adoption of more efficient control measures and prophylaxis.

Human Infections with Microsporum gypseum Complex (Nannizzia gypsea) in Slovenia

Microsporum gypseum complex is a group of geophillic dermatophytes with a worldwide distribution and is a rare cause of dermatomycoses in humans. The infection most commonly presents as tinea corporis, with some geographical and occupational variations. We studied M. gypseum complex infections in patients examined in the Mycological Laboratory of the Department of Dermatovenereology, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, during the period 2000-2015. Diagnosis was confirmed by mycological examination. Skin scales were examined by direct microscopy and cultivated on Sabouraud glucose agar. A total of 226 patients were identified, representing 1.5% of all dermatophyte infections during the study period. Tinea corporis was diagnosed in majority of patients, followed by tinea manus, tinea faciei, tinea inguinalis and tinea pedis. Tinea capitis was observed in three and onychomycosis in two patients only. Infection was disseminated on different parts of the body in nine patients. In 39% of patients, infection was diagnosed in children younger than 9 years. Face and scalp infection was more often observed in children. The incidence was the highest during July and October. Contacts with soil and domestic animals were often reported. Data on the prevalence and clinical characteristics of M. gypseum complex infection in other countries are reviewed.

Epidemiological trends of dermatophytosis in Tehran, Iran: A five-year retrospective study

OBJECTIVE

Dermatophytosis is the most frequent fungal infection all over the world and its frequency is constantly increasing. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical features and epidemiological trends of dermatophytosis over the years 2010 to 2014 in Tehran, Iran.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 13,312 patients clinically suspected of cutaneous fungal infections were examined. Skin scales, plucked hairs, nail clippings and sub-ungual debris were examined by direct microscopy and culture. Dermatophyte species were identified at the species level by a combination of morphological and physiological criteria.

RESULTS

Direct microscopy confirmed a contamination rate of 19.7% (2622/13,312 cases) of which 1535 cases (58.5%) were culture positive distributed in male (1022 cases) and female (513 cases). The most commonly infected age group was the 30-39 years old. Tinea pedis (30.4%) was the most prevalent type of dermatophytosis followed by tinea cruris (29.8%) and tinea corporis (15.8%). Epidermophyton floccosum (31%) was the most prevalent causative agent, followed by Trichophyton rubrum (26.2%) and Trichophyton mentagrophytes (20.3%).

CONCLUSION

Our results showed considerable distribution of dermatophytosis from zoophilic, anthropophilic and geophilic species among population with diverse age groups. Although anthropophilic fungi such as T. mentagrophytes, E. floccosum, and T. rubrum were the main etiologic agents of dermatophytosis, the prevalence of T. verrucosum showed a meaningful increase over the years, which highlights the importance of rural dermatophytosis mainly transmitted from large animals. This noticeable information improves our current knowledge about dermatophytosis and assists to establish effective prevention and therapeutic strategies to overcome the disease.

An epidemiological study of animals dermatomycoses in Iran

OBJECTIVE

To determine the fungal species isolated from skin lesions of different animals suspected of having dermatomycoses and their prevalence in different regions of Iran.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 1011 animals (292 dogs, 229 cats, 168 horses, 100 camels, 98 cows, 60 squirrels, 37 birds, 15 sheep, 6 goats, 5 rabbits and 1 fox) suspected of having dermatomycoses were examined. The samples were obtained by plucking the hairs and feathers with forceps around the affected area and scraping the epidermal scales with a sterile scalpel blade. All collected samples were analyzed by direct microscopy and culture. Laboratory identification of the fungal isolates was based on their colonial, microscopic and biochemical characteristics.

RESULTS

Fungal agents were recovered from 553 (54.7%) animals suspected of having dermatomycoses. Of 553 confirmed cases, 255 (49.7%) were positive for dermatophytosis, 251 (45.4%) for Malassezia dermatitis, 14 (2.5%) for candidiasis, 12 (2.2%) for aspergillosis and 1 (0.2%) for zygomycosis. Cats (36.3%) were the most prevalent infected animals, followed by camels (13.4%), dogs (12.8%), horses (12.5%), cows (12.3%), squirrels (5.4%), birds (3.6%), sheep (2%), goats (1.1%), rabbits (0.4%) and fox (0.2%). Microsporum canis (M. canis) was the most frequent fungus isolated from dogs and fox, Malassezia pachydermatis (M. pachydermatis) from cats, horses and squirrels, Trichophyton verrucosum (T. verrucosum) from cows and camels, T. mentagrophytes var. mentagrophytes from sheep, goats and rabbits, and Aspergillus fumigatus (A. fumigatus) from birds.

CONCLUSION

The results suggested that periodic screening of animals suspected of having dermatomycoses and necessary treatments could help in the management of their public health problem.

A retrospective study of cutaneous fungal infections in patients referred to Imam Reza Hospital of Mashhad, Iran during 2000-2011

Background and Purpose:

Detection of agents responsible for cutaneous mycosis may be effective in the prevention of fungal infections from environmental and animal sources. With this background in mind, in this study, we aimed to identify the distribution of cutaneous mycotic infections in patients referred to Imam Reza Hospital of Mashhad, Iran

during 2000- 2011.

Materials and Methods:

In total, 8694 patients suspected of superficial and cutaneous mycosis, referred to the Medical Mycology Laboratory of Imam Reza Hospital of Mashhad, Iran, were recruited during March 2000-2011 and were examined in terms of fungal infections.

Results:

Of 8694 suspected patients, 3804 (43.75%) cases suffered from superficial and cutaneous mycosis. In total, 1936 (50.9%) patients were male, and 1868 (49.1%) were female. Malassezia infections (58.1%), dermatophytosis (33.1%), cutaneous candidiasis (6.8%), aspergillosis (1.6%), and saprophytic cutaneous mycosis (0.4%) were the most common infections.

Conclusion:

In this study, Malassezia infections were the most common superficial and cutaneous mycoses. Therefore, it seems essential to focus on the prevention of these infections in our society.