Molecular Identification of Malassezia Species in Patients with Malassezia folliculitis in Sfax, Tunisia

• Published in: Mycopathologia (1975) 2017-06, Vol.182 (5-6), p.583-589
• Main Authors: Cheikhrouhou, F., Guidara, R., Masmoudi, A., Trabelsi, H., Neji, S., Sellami, H., Makni, F., Ayadi, A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Analysis; Biodiversity; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Care and treatment; Child; Child, Preschool; Cluster Analysis; Dermatomycoses - microbiology; DNA, Fungal - chemistry; DNA, Fungal - genetics; DNA, Ribosomal - chemistry; DNA, Ribosomal - genetics; Enzymes; Eukaryotic Microbiology; Female; Follicles; Folliculitis; Folliculitis - microbiology; Genetic diversity; Genetic variability; Genetic Variation; Genomes; Genomics; Genotype & phenotype; Genotypes; Hair; Health aspects; Humans; Identification; Laboratories; Life Sciences; Malassezia - classification; Malassezia - genetics; Malassezia - isolation & purification; Male; Medical Microbiology; Microbial Ecology; Microbiology; Middle Aged; Morphology; Parasitology; Phylogeny; Plant Sciences; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; Primers; Restriction fragment length polymorphism; RNA, Ribosomal - genetics; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Species; Tunisia; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0301-486X; 1573-0832
• DOI: 10.1007/s11046-017-0113-0

Aim Malassezia folliculitis is caused by the invasion of hair follicles by large numbers of Malassezia cells. Several Malassezia researches still use cultures, morphology and biochemical techniques. The aim of this study was to identify Malassezia species isolated from patients diagnosed with folliculitis, at the Parasitology and Mycology Laboratory of Sfax University Hospital, and to explore the genetic diversity of Malassezia by using PCR-RFLP and PCR-sequencing targeting the rDNA region of the Malassezia genome. Patients and Methods Specimens were taken from 27 patients with Malassezia folliculitis. For the molecular identification, PCR amplification of the 26S rDNAD1/D2 region was carried out using the Malup and Maldown primers and three restriction enzymes (BanI, MspI and HeaII) for RFLP analysis. The nucleotide sequences of each isolate were compared to those in the NCBI GenBank by using BLASTIN algorithm. Results Three species of Malassezia yeasts were identified among the 31 Malassezia strains isolated: M. globosa (83.9%), M. sympodialis (12. 9%) and M. furfur (3.2%). The sequence analysis of M. globosa showed six genotypes. Conclusion There is a high genotypic variability of M. globosa colonizing patients with folliculitis.