Absence of DNA sequence diversity of the intergenic spacer 1 region in Malassezia nana isolates from cats.

Malassezia nana is a recently-described lipophilic yeast that has been isolated from the ear canals and skin of cats in Japan and Europe and from Brazilian cattle with or without otitis externa. Previous reports have demonstrated that significant intra-species variability exists in the DNA sequence of the intergenic spacer 1 region (IGS1), particularly amongst M. globosa, M. restricta and M. pachydermatis, and that certain IGS genotypes are associated with various epidemiological factors, including host disease status. In the present study, we demonstrated that the IGS1 sequences of 12 UK isolates of M. nana from cats and of six isolates from Spain (5 cat, 1 dog) were identical to each other and to CBS 9557, the M. nana type culture originally obtained from a Japanese cat with otitis externa. Further studies are needed to determine whether other genotypes of M. nana can be identified and associated with geographical regions and the species and disease status of mammalian hosts.