Teleomorphs and mating types in Trichophyton mentagrophytes complex
Hejtmánek, M.; Hejtmánková, N.
Acta Universitatis Palackianae Olomucensis Facultatis Medicae 123: 11-33
1989
ISSN/ISBN: 0301-2514 PMID: 2533818 Document Number: 338180
In the set of 132 strains of Trichophyton mentagrophytes isolated from humans (129 strains) and animals (3 strains) with dermatophytosis in Czechoslovakia, 41 strains were classified as Arthroderma benhamiae. Out of them, 40 strains were of mating type + and one strain of type -. Ten strains were A. vanbreuseghemii, including 3 strains of mating type + and 7 strains of type -. Other strains studied did not form any fertile cleistothecia during crossing. Some strains of A. benhaminae developed defective cleistothecia with rare asci or without ascospores. From conidia of two strains (T. mentagrophytes var. mentagrophytes and T. m. var. quinckeanum) two morphological variants (granular and fluffy) were cultivated. Both variants were A. benhamiae type + and pathogenic. The determination of mating types using the test of sexual stimulation with Arthroderma simii and hybridization test with the reference strains of A. benhamiae and A. vanbreuseghemii gave identical results. No relationships between the variety of anamorphous state (T. mentagrophytes var. mentagrophytes, var. granulosum, var. interdigitale, var. quinckeanum), teleomorph, mating type, localization of dermatophytosis, and pathogenicity for guinea pig were found. The reasons of unequal distribution and mating types in clinical isolates of various dermatophytes are discussed.