First Report on Isolating Auricularia nigricans from Shoe Inner Surface: ITS-Based Molecular Identification

Authors : Gülçin Özcan Ateş

Pages : 140-145

Doi:10.30708/mantar.1769661

View : 82 | Download : 221

Publication Date : 2025-10-24

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :This study aimed to identify a fungus isolated from a shoe sample, one of the personal items that has been in contact with humans. Isolation was performed using Dichloran Rose Bengal Chloramphenicol Agar, incubation was carried out at 25°C for 7 days, and then purification was achieved on Potato Dextrose Agar. For molecular species identification from pure cultures, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA was amplified using primers ITS1 and ITS4 after DNA isolation. The resulting sequence showed a high similarity (99.62%) to Auricularia nigricans in the GenBank database, as determined by BLAST analysis. Phylogenetic analysis also confirmed a strong relationship with this species. While Auricularia nigricans is generally known to be found in dead woody materials in nature, its isolation from a personal item for the first time in this study highlights the potential spread of fomite-borne fungal infections. This result reveals that fungi also spread via fomites and their impact on environmentally fungal biodiversity.
Keywords : Auricularia nigricans, Ayakkabı, Fomit, ITS, Moleküler Tanımlama

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