Detection of Mala f and Mala s allergen sequences within the genus Malassezia

Malassezia species are opportunistic yeasts that are involved in the pathogenesis of a number of skin diseases including atopic eczema/dermatitis syndrome. Previously, we cloned six allergens from Malassezia sympodialis isolate ATCC 42132; these allergens are designated Mala s 1, and Mala s 5-Mala s 9. Three additional allergens, Mala f 2-Mala f 4, have been isolated from M. furfur by other investigators. The objective of the present study was to investigate the presence of these Mala sequences in seven Malassezia species. Genomic DNA amplification by PCR and sequencing showed that M. globosa, M. obtusa and M. sympodialis contain DNA sequences corresponding to all the allergens except Mala f 2 and Mala f 3. M. pachydermatis contains Mala s 1, Mala f 4, and Mala s 5-Mala s 8. M. restricta and M. slooffiae possessed Mala f 4 and Mala s 6. M. furfur was seen to possess Mala f 2-Mala f 4 as well as Mala s 5-Mala s 7. Our data from reverse-transcriptase PCR showed a more species-specific pattern of amplification. M. furfur evidenced expression of Mala f 2-Mala f 4. M. globosa and M. obtusa appeared to express only Mala s 6. M. pachydermatis expressed Mala f 4, Mala s 6, and Mala s 8, while M. restricta and M. slooffiae expressed Mala f 4 and Mala s 6. M. sympodialis expressed all the allergens except Mala f 2 and Mala f 3. Different Malassezia species appear to contain both common and species-specific allergen sequences.