Malassezia Dandruff

Malassezia sp. is the causative agent of dandruff, which is the most commercially exploited disease by the cosmetic industry. This study is aimed at the isolation of the different species of Malassezia from young adults in Coimbatore region. The predominant species isolated was M.symbodialis.
Key Words: Malassezia, dandruff
Introduction

Dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis are common hyperproliferative scalp disorders associated with Malassezia globosa. Dandruff occurs in atleast 40- 50% of the general population and with a higher prevalence in tropical countries like India. Despite the global distribution, limited research has been conducted to date concerning the pathogenesis of Malassezia yeasts. The flakes on the scalp can be an embarrassing situation and is the most exploited disease by the cosmetic industry (Ranganathan and Mukhopadhyay, 2010). Its prevalence and severity is greatest in young men. Although a variety of antifungal agents are available in the market for the treatment of dandruff, yet complete control is far from the reach. The available products and drugs are unable to prevent recurrence. The daily use of many shampoos makes hair dull and the chemical contents have their own negative effects. Thus the present study is aimed to isolate and identify the

In primary cultures, colonies are surrounded by an abundant precipitate, as in species of the M. sympodialis complex. Cells are spherical, 2.5–8 mm in diameter, and budding is monopolar on a narrow base. In contrast to M. furfur, this micromorphology is a stable character in M. globosa. Colonies of M. symbodialis were glistening, smooth, flat or with a slight central elevation. Growth of both the species occurred at all the different temperatures studied except M. globosa that was unable to grow at