Scientists Sequence Genome of Fungus That Causes Dandruff

Researchers at Proctor & Gamble Beauty recently announced that they have completely sequenced the genome of Malassezia globosa, the fungus that is responsible for causing dandruff, which was only recently identified [1].

A fungus of the Malassezia genus. Courtesy of www.phi.cdc.gov

In order to sequence the genome, scientists cultivated 10 liters of the fungus by feeding it certain types of olive oil [2]. After cultivating the required number of fungi, researchers froze the fungus in liquid nitrogen so that its DNA structure would not denature, which enabled the team to extract the entire DNA sequence in one piece and then splice it into numerous plasmids [2]. The researchers discovered that Malassezia globosa is composed of only 4,285 protein encoding genes and contains very few repeated elements [2]. They also discovered that the fungus can secrete a large variety of enzymes which can dissolve hair and survives by feeding off lipids that are naturally produced on the human scalp [1]. With the fungus’s genome sequenced, there are many more possible treatments for dandruff with a wider variety of molecular targets.

Works Cited:
[1] Gemmer C, DeAngelis Y, Theelen B, Boekhout T, Dawson Jr T (2002). “Fast, noninvasive method for molecular detection and differentiation of Malassezia yeast species on human skin and application of the method to dandruff microbiology”. J Clin Microbiol 40 (9): 3350-7.

[2] “Sequencing the Malassezia Genome.” Dandruff Genome Sequencing Story. 05 Nov 2007. P&G Beauty Science. 10 Nov 2007 .