Protease Production In Dermatophytes During Sporulation And Vegetative Phase - Its Role In Pathogenesis And Mating Type Associated Virulence

Abstract

Different strains of common dermatophytes including different mating strain, collected from clinical, animal and soil sources as also some tester strains, were studied for their proteolytic enzyme activity during vegetative and sporulation phases. Sabouraus’s dextrose broth and Takashio broth were used to induce vegetative and sporulation phases respectively in these dermatophytes. All the strains of T. rubrum showed very low enzyme activity during sporulation when compared vegetative growth phase. In other species of dermatophytes. The enzyme activity was found to be almost similar during both the growth phases. High protease production in association with one mating type of A. vanbreuseghemii was observed. The enzme activity of clinical isolates of the non-anthropophilic species such T. simii, M. nanum and M. gypseum were relatively low when compared to T.mentagrophytes var. interdigitale and T. tonsurans. The severity of the lesion produced by these established the fact that protease in dermatophytes has a define role in pathogenesis. Protease production during sporulation in T. rubrum may be one of the selective advantages of this species. General protease production was found to be independent of mating type in most of the dermatophyte species.