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Unknown 79
Mould identification: a virtual self assessment

Case history

A 42 year male stable hand presented with a scaly erythematous lesion on the wrist. Skin scales
were collected for microscopy and culture.

Clinical presentation

Culture

Culture

Microscopy

What is your identification?

Trichophyton mentagrophytes

Trichophyton equinum

Trichophyton verrucosum

Correct! Excellent, you have really done well. Please find additional information below.

Unknown 79 = Trichophyton equinum

Clinical presentation: Granulomatous lesion with a crusting border of two years duration
on the wrist of a male stable hand caused by T. equinum.

Culture: Colonies are usually flat, but some may develop gentle folds or radial grooves,
white to buff in colour, suede-like to downy in texture, and are similar to T. mentagrophytes.
Cultures usually have a deep-yellow submerged fringe and reverse which later becomes
dark red in the centre.

Microscopy: Microscopically, abundant microconidia which may be clavate to pyriform and

sessile or spherical and stalked are formed laterally along the hyphae. Macroconidia are only
rarely produced, but when present are clavate, smooth, thin-walled and of variable size.
Occasional nodular organs may be present and the microconidia often undergo a
transformation to produce abundant chlamydoconidia in old cultures. RG-2 organism.

Comment: Trichophyton equinum is a zoophilic fungus causing ringworm in horses and rare
infections in humans. It is of world-wide distribution except for. var. autotrophicum which is
restricted to Australia and New Zealand. Most strains require nicotinic acid for growth
except those from Australia and New Zealand, which are autotrophic (var. autotrophicum).
Invaded hairs show an ectothrix infection but do not fluoresce under Wood's ultra-violet
light.

Key features: Culture characteristics, microscopic morphology and contact with horses.

About Trichophyton equinum Back to virtual assessment

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