An Intrafamilial Transmission of Arthroderma Benhamiae in Canadian Porcupines (Erethizon Dorsatum) in a Japanese Zoo

    January 2008 in “ Medical mycology ”
    Hideo Takahashi, Hiroshi Takahashi-kyuhachi, Yoko Takahashi, Kyoko Yarita, Ayami Takayama, Tomo Inomata, Ayako Sano, Kazuko Nishimura, Katsuhiko Kamei
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    TLDR Canadian porcupines in a Japanese zoo passed a skin fungus to each other.
    In a Japanese zoo, a study was conducted on a family of Canadian porcupines consisting of two adults and two offspring, which revealed intrafamilial transmission of Arthroderma benhamiae, a type of dermatophyte. The offspring exhibited severe hair loss, while the adult porcupines showed mild or no symptoms. Tricophyton spp. isolates, morphologically identical and identified as Arthroderma benhamiae Americano-European race, were recovered from all porcupines. This study marked the second isolation of dermatophytes from porcupines, with two different internal transcribed spacer (ITS) types found, one predominant and one secondary isolated only from the mother. These ITS sequences were previously unrecorded in Japan or the GenBank database. Additionally, 28 rodents and three insectivores from the same zoo tested negative for dermatophytes.
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