Occurrence of Malassezia Yeasts in Dermatologically Diseased Dogs

The Malassezia genus is represented by several lipophilic yeasts, normally present on the skin of many warm-blooded vertebrates, including humans. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of Malassezia yeasts in dogs with skin lesions (dermatitis, interdigital dermatitis and inflammation of anal sacs) and otitis externa. The presence of Malassezia spp. was investigated in a group of 300 dogs exhibiting clinical manifestations. The isolates of Malassezia were identified by using phenotypic (biochemical-physiological and morphological characteristics) and genotypic methods (PCR, RFLP-AluI, BanI and MspA1I) which allowed their precise identification. Malassezia yeasts were isolated from 84 specimens obtained from 76 positive dogs. M. pachydermatis was the most frequently isolated species (79 isolates) in this study. M. furfur was identified in four dogs and M. nana in one dog. The prevalence of isolated Malassezia spp. was 25.3 % in dogs with skin lesions; from which 36.0 % were dogs suffering from otitis externa, 24.5 % from dogs having dermatitis, 16.4 % from dogs with interdigital dermatitis and 14.3 % from dogs having inflammation of the anal sacs. A higher prevalence of Malassezia spp. was observed in animals with pendulous ears in comparison with dogs having erect ears.