Tinea corporis caused by an unusual strain of Microsporum audouinii that perforates hair in vitro.
We report on a dermatophyte infection acquired by a young woman from Germany who had worked in Ghana. The strain isolated from her skin lesions showed morphological and physiological features compatible with Microsporum audouinii but a clearly positive hair perforation test made its definite identification by conventional methods equivocal. A genetic analysis finally unambiguously revealed Microsporum audouinii. This is the first observation of a Microsporum audouinii strain with a positive hair perforation test. The ability to perforate hair may be related to attributes favouring an inflammatory host response.
Brasch
J
J
Hügel
R
R
Lipowsky
F
F
Gräser
Y
Y
D000328:Adult; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D005869:Ghana; D006197:Hair / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D008864:Microsporum / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D012867:Skin / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D014005:Tinea / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology*
D004271:DNA, Fungal; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer