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Tinea corporis caused by Trichophyton equinum transmitted from asymptomatic dogs to two siblings

  • Veterinary Microbiology - Short Communication
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Abstract

Each year, millions of people worldwide are affected by superficial mycoses, which are frequently caused by dermatophytes having affinity to the scalp, nails, hair and the stratum corneum of the skin. The changing reservoirs of zoophilic dermatophytes, the numerous reports of animal carrier status, and the increasing number of pets make the diagnosis difficult, which is usually impossible based only on medical history. Herein we present a case report of tinea corporis caused by Trichophyton equinum in siblings who had no contact with horses. The routine laboratory diagnostic procedures for identification of isolates were based on phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, especially molecular techniques using rDNA internal transcribed spacer sequences. The results showed that both techniques proved to be insufficiently discriminatory to differentiate two closely related species, i.e. Trichophyton equinum and Trichophyton tonsurans. Introduction of a TEF1 sequence analysis to the diagnostic procedures revealed consistent differences between these two species and facilitated unambiguous identification. Interestingly, dogs that could leave the homestead freely were the source of the infection in children. In conclusion, Trichophyton equinum was considered in the past as a strict zoophilic dermatophyte associated with horses and rarely transmitted to humans. This study revealed that this species can have other reservoirs and live in the fur of asymptomatic animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Biological Bases of Animal Diseases, Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033, Lublin, Poland

    Sebastian Gnat, Dominik Łagowski & Aneta Nowakiewicz

  2. Faculty of Biological Sciences, Institute of Genetics and Microbiology, Department of Mycology and Genetics, University of Wroclaw, Przybyszewskiego 63/77, 51-148, Wroclaw, Poland

    Mariusz Dyląg

Authors
  1. Sebastian Gnat
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  2. Dominik Łagowski
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  3. Aneta Nowakiewicz
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  4. Mariusz Dyląg
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dominik Łagowski.

Ethics declarations

This study was carried out in accordance with The Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki) for experiments involving humans http://www.healthscience.net/resources/declarationof-helsinki. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants and their legal guardians included in the study. All applicable international, national and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. These procedures comply with the basic and ethical principles for research involving the use of animals. All procedures on animals were performed by a team of trained veterinarians.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Responsible Editor: Carlos Pelleschi Taborda.

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Gnat, S., Łagowski, D., Nowakiewicz, A. et al. Tinea corporis caused by Trichophyton equinum transmitted from asymptomatic dogs to two siblings. Braz J Microbiol 51, 1433–1438 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-019-00204-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-019-00204-0

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