Isolation Reddish Pigment Producer Metschnikowia Species as Skin Residents: A Case Report and Short Review of the Literature

Author(s): Zahra Rafat, Seyed Jamal Hashemi, Seyed Farshad Hashemi, Roshanak Daie Ghazvini, Behrad Roohi, Kazem Ahmadikia, Heidar Bakhshi

In our investigation on skin fungal flora associated with 9 different skin sites of 238 healthy people, including 119 males and 119 females, 3 Metschnikowia species were isolated. 2 of them were detected from the fingernail and the exile of an 87-year-old man and 1 of them was detected from the groin of a 76-years-old man. Collected samples were examined by culture on Sabouraud Chloramphenicol Agar and then 3 yeast-like organisms with reddish pigment, were detected. For precise identification, the D1/D2 domain of the large subunit (26S) ribosomal DNA region was sequenced. To our knowledge, this is the first report of isolation reddish pigment producer Metschnikowia spp. as human cutaneous residents in Iran. According to the fact that the intensity of pigmentation is correlated with the antimicrobial activity, this rare yeast is a human colonizer that specially can turn into a human pathogen in immunocompromised patients.