Trichophyton

Trichophyton
Trichophyton rubrum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Ascomycota
Class:	Eurotiomycetes
Order:	Onygenales
Family:	Arthrodermataceae
Genus:	Trichophyton

Trichophyton is a genus of fungi, which includes the parasitic varieties that cause tinea, including athlete's foot, ringworm, jock itch, and similar infections of the nail, beard, skin and scalp. Trichophyton fungi are molds characterized by the development of both smooth-walled macro- and microconidia. Macroconidia are mostly borne laterally directly on the hyphae or on short pedicels, and are thin- or thick-walled, clavate to , and range from 4 to 8 by 8 to 50 μm in size. Macroconidia are few or absent in many species. Microconidia are spherical, pyriform to clavate or of irregular shape, and range from 2 to 3 by 2 to 4 μm in size.

Geophilic fungi prefer to live in soil. Anthropophilic fungi prefer to infect humans. Zoophilic fungi prefer to infect animals other than humans. Humans and animals are natural reservoirs for parasitic or dermatophytic fungi.

Trichophyton erinacei

The anthropophilic varieties cause forms of dermatophytosis, that is, fungal infection of the skin. They are keratinophilic: they feed on the keratin in nails, hair, and dead skin.

Trichophyton concentricum causes "Malabar itch", a skin infection consisting of an eruption of a number of concentric rings of overlapping scales forming papulosquamous patches.

Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton interdigitale cause athlete's foot (tinea pedis), toenail fungal infections (a.k.a. tinea unguium, a.k.a. onychomycosis), crotch itch (a.k.a. tinea cruris), and ringworm (a misnomer, as there is no worm involved; it is also known as tinea corporis). The fungi can easily spread to other areas of the body as well and to the host's home environs (socks, shoes, clothes, showers, bathtubs, counters, floors, carpets, etc.).

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Wikipedia