Isolation and Investigation of Keratinophilic Fungi in the Parks of Municipality Districts of Tehran

Background: Keratinophilic fungi are a small but well-defined and important group of fungi that can degrade the hard keratin. So, keratinophilic fungi may be pathogenic with regard to keratinized tissues of human and animal. Objectives: In this study we took samples from the soil of Tehran parks, to investigate the role of keratinophilic fungi in soil, because of the frequent contacts of human being with soil, especially children. Materials and Methods: Two hundred soil samples from different parks were examined for the presence of geophilic keratinophilic fungi. Fungi were isolated from the samples by the method of hair baiting. Results: A total of 222 isolates of keratinophilic fungi were obtained. The following species were isolated: Acremonium (17.5%), Chrysosporium (12.6%), Fusarium (11.3%), Cunninghamella (11.3%), Microsporum gypseum (10.4%), Gliocladium (9.9%), Ulocladium (6.7%), Penicillium (4.0%), Aspergillus niger (3.6%), Aspergillus (2.7%), Alternaria (2.2%), Scopulariopsis (1.8%), Verticillium (1.8%), Mucor (1.3%), Drechslera (0.9%), Rhizopus (0.9%), Trichophyton mentagrophytes (0.4%), Cladosporium (0.4%). Conclusions: The soil represents the main reservoir of keratinophilic fungi including dermatophytes and non-dermatophytes. Therefore, soil can be a source of infection for humans and animals. From the results presented in this study, an association exists between keratinophilic fungi and the soil of parks in municipality districts of Tehran.