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Trichophyton mentagrophytes ITS Genotype VII from Thailand

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Dermatophytes and Dermatophytoses

Abstract

Currently, in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, a new and until now not known entity of inflammatory and abscessing dermatophyte infection is observed. In particular, these deep infections of the skin and their appendages include Tinea pubogenitalis, Tinea cruris, Tinea barbae, Tinea corporis, and Tinea capitis. Some of the patients came back from a journey to Thailand or South East Asia where transmission occurred. But, independently from a journey to abroad, the dermatophyte might be transferred in Germany, too. In every case, this deep infection is caused by the zoophilic dermatophyte Trichophyton mentagrophytes of the newly described Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) genotype VII. From 24 patients with dermatomycoses, altogether 25 isolates of T. mentagrophytes were isolated in the last 6 years. Among them were both male and female patients, the age range was from 1 to 50 years. The infection was affecting the pubogenital area, the capillitium, the face, or the trunk. Most of these infections were acquired in Germany without a stay abroad. A total of 25 dermatophyte isolates—all belonging to T. mentagrophytes—could be characterised. Species identification was confirmed for all isolates by sequencing of the ITS region of rDNA genes. Molecular relationship of the 24 isolates in comparison to already known genotypes within this species was depicted in a phylogenetic tree. The sequences obtained for these isolates are forming their own phylogenetic cluster, corresponding to a new genotype, the ITS genotype VII (“Thai variant”). This genotype is clearly set up from other clusters of T. mentagrophytes, e. g. zoophilic strains isolated from animals and human dermatophytoses, and from T. mentagrophytes genotype VIII “India”. This genotype, as the other zoophilic T. mentagrophytes genotypes, can also be distinguished from the anthropophilic Trichophyton interdigitale.

Besides a direct sexual transmission and non-sexual human-to-human contagion, an indirect transmission due to sports or fitness training is suspected. As major predisposing factor for Tinea pubogenital, intimate shaving has to be considered. For treatment, oral antifungal agents should be used, first of all terbinafine, alternatively itraconazole or fluconazole. In particular, Tinea genitalis profunda may require oral terbinafine treatment for several months.

The question arises if the isolates of T. mentagrophytes genotype VII recently detected in Europe, especially in Germany, do possess higher virulence when compared to other genotypes of T. mentagrophytes. Laboratory investigations on pathogenicity and virulence factors of this dermatophyte should be initiated to answer to this speculation.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Labor für Medizinische Mikrobiologie, Partnerschaft Dr. Constanze Krüger & Prof. Pietro Nenoff, Rötha, Germany

    Pietro Nenoff, Daniela Koch, Franziska Wittig, Constanze Krüger & Silke Uhrlaß

  2. Hautarztpraxis, Oelsnitz, Germany

    Gudrun Wendrock-Shiga

  3. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten und Allergologie, Heinrich-Braun-Kliniken gGmbH, Zwickau, Germany

    Dirk Mechtel

  4. Hautarztpraxis Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    Katja Schubert

  5. Medizinisches Labor Ostsachsen, Niederlassung Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    Regina Jarsumbeck

  6. Universitätsklinik für Dermatologie, Venerologie, Allergologie und Phlebologie, Johannes Wesling Klinikum Minden, Minden, Germany

    Elke Lusmöller & Rudolf Stadler

  7. Department of Dermatology and Venerology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria

    Gabriele Ginter-Hanselmayer

  8. Mycoclinic Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Hans-Jürgen Tietz

  9. Labor Dr. Eicke und Kollegen, EicLab GmbH, Abteilung Mikrobiologie, Berlin, Germany

    Roland Pfüller

  10. Hautarztpraxis Helena und Henning Dröge, Berlin, Germany

    Helena Dröge

  11. Klinik für Dermatologie, Venerologie und Allergologie, Universitätsklinikum, Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Bartosz Malisiewicz

  12. Klinik für Dermatologie und Phlebologie, Katharinen-Hospital, Unna, Germany

    Gökhan Mutluer

Authors
  1. Pietro Nenoff
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  2. Gudrun Wendrock-Shiga
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  12. Daniela Koch
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pietro Nenoff .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Univ Angers, Université de Bretagne Occidentale, CHU, SFR ICAT, Groupe d’Etude des Interactions Hôte-Pathogène (GEIHP, EA 3142), Angers, France

    Jean-Philippe Bouchara

  2. Laboratory for Medical Microbiology, Rötha, Sachsen, Germany

    Pietro Nenoff

  3. Mediprobe Research Inc., London, ON, Canada

    Aditya K. Gupta

  4. New York State Department of Health Wadsworth Center, Mycology Laboratory, Albany, NY, USA

    Vishnu Chaturvedi

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Nenoff, P. et al. (2021). Trichophyton mentagrophytes ITS Genotype VII from Thailand. In: Bouchara, JP., Nenoff, P., Gupta, A.K., Chaturvedi, V. (eds) Dermatophytes and Dermatophytoses. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67421-2_12

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