Endangered Zoonotic Fungal Species from Chicken (<i>Gallus gallus domestics</i>)

Abstract

Lophophyton gallinae (Microsporum gallinae) is a zoophilic fungus that causes ringworm in chickens and related species, and occasionally in humans. There are 45 human cases worldwide including a Japanese case from Okinawa in 2009. After the finding of the human L. gallinae case, 793 chickens in Japan, including 293 from the mainland and 500 from the Nansei Island areas, were investigated to determine the prevalence of dermatophytes and their related fungal species. The survey was carried out from December 2008 to March 2013. Various dermatophytes and related fungal species were isolated from the studied chickens, with a prevalence of 24.6%. In total, 224 dermatophytes and related species were isolated in the survey. The most commonly isolated species included, in descending order of frequency, Arthroderma multifidum, Aphanoascus terreus, and Chrysosporium spp. Ar. multifidum and Ap. terreus have no record of pathogenicity, and the present isolates of Chrysosporium spp. were not matched to pathogenic Chrysosporium spp. based on the ITS rDNA sequences. Interestingly, an L. gallinae isolate was detected in a male 10-month-old shamo (fighting cock) from the main island. Furthermore, one strain of Arthroderma simii was also isolated as the second record in Japan following that from an imported chimpanzee. Although L. gallinae and Ar. simii are likely to be endemic in our country, the transmission of dermatophytosis from chickens to humans is unlikely to occur because of the reduced chances for citizens to come in contact with chickens due to various factors.

Human and Zoonotic Dermatophytoses: Epidemiological Aspects

“…Another zoophilic dermatophyte that may cause rare human infections is L. gallinae. The elective hosts of this dermatophyte are chicken, with sporadic cases in other animals and humans (Londero et al, 1969;Yamaguchi, 2019). Among the few reported human infections, predisposing conditions such as diabetes or immunosuppressive diseases were observed in several cases (del Palacio et al, 1992;Poblete-Gutiérrez et al, 2006).…”

“…The fungus' endemicity is, however, in doubt since it has been reported from several countries worldwide, including Brazil, the United States, France, Belgium, Iran, and Saudi Arabia (Beguin et al, 2013). Outside the Indian subcontinent, Chabasse (1988) found the fungus in the soil in France and it was isolated from monkeys in Argentina (Boehringer et al, 1998) and Japan (Yamaguchi, 2019).…”

Survey of Keratinophilic Fungi from Feathers of Birds in Tuscany

“…Trichophyton terrestre , recovered from 12 specimens in the present study, has been reported to be isolated as an anamorph or in the perfect state Arthroderma quadrifidum from several bird species, many of which are waterfowl [ 9 ], but also from Ph. colchicus [ 6 ], from G. gallus domesticus in Japan [ 27 , 28 , 29 ] and to a lesser extent in Germany [ 10 ]. This fungal species is considered as uncommon on birds’ feathers, probably for its sensitivity to feathers’ fat and maybe to sunlight, and is reported to be recovered when it was the only fungal species [ 4 ].…”

In vitro biological activities of clove essential oil formulations against Microsporum gallinae ATCC 90749

“…Nweze [4] found the prevalence of fungal skin diseases was 18.2% in chickens and 13.6% in ducks, with M. gallinae isolated from 75% of infected chickens and 100% of infected ducks. M. gallinae has also been reported to infect dogs, monkeys, cats, squirrels, mice, canaries, pigeons, and turkeys, as well as causing ringworm in humans, and severe infections in immunocompromised hosts [5,6].…”