Detection and identification of dermatophytes based on currently available methods - a comparative study.

Area of Science:

• Medical Mycology
• Diagnostic Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Accurate identification of dermatophytes is crucial for effective antifungal treatment and epidemiological studies.
• Conventional diagnostic methods for dermatophytoses have limitations, prompting the development of new techniques.
• New diagnostic technologies like real-time PCR and MALDI-TOF MS are emerging for dermatophyte detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the diagnostic performance of conventional methods with real-time PCR and MALDI-TOF MS for dermatophyte identification.
• To assess the suitability of these diagnostic techniques in detecting dermatophytes from human and animal infections.

Main Methods:

• Direct microscopic examination (light and fluorescence microscopy) and fungal isolation were used as conventional methods.
• Real-time PCR assays (pan-dermatophyte and species-specific) were employed for molecular detection.
• Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was utilized for identification.

Main Results:

• Conventional isolation yielded high detection rates (90.2% symptomatic, 71.4% asymptomatic).
• Real-time PCR showed strong detection (85.3% symptomatic, 82.9% asymptomatic), while species-specific PCR varied (70.7%, 37.1%).
• MALDI-TOF MS demonstrated high concordance with conventional methods (97.2% symptomatic, 72% asymptomatic).

Conclusions:

• No single diagnostic method is universally ideal for all dermatophytoses cases.
• Conventional mycological diagnostic techniques are still considered the most effective and reliable.
• Comparative analysis is vital for integrating novel diagnostic technologies into routine laboratory practice for dermatophytoses.