Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species

The identification of filamentous fungi by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI–TOF MS) represents a challenge due to their complex taxonomy and the lack of comprehensive databases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the current status of available M...

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Main Authors: David Rodriguez-Temporal, Daniel Adrados, Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo, Miriam Alkorta, Ana Candela, Andrés Canut, Carmen Castro, Carlos Gustavo Cilla, Juan de Dios Caballero, María Ercibengoa, Marina Fernández, Isabel Fradejas, Oscar Fraile, María José Goyanes, Ainhoa Gutiérrez, José Israel López, Concha López, Ana Isabel López-Calleja, Ramiro López-Medrano, Patricia Muñoz, Adriana María Ortega, Marina Oviaño, Javier Peman, María Rodríguez-Mayo, Alba Ruiz, Alexander Tristancho, Belén Rodríguez-Sánchez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Journal of Fungi
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/11/5/356
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author David Rodriguez-Temporal
Daniel Adrados
Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo
Miriam Alkorta
Ana Candela
Andrés Canut
Carmen Castro
Carlos Gustavo Cilla
Juan de Dios Caballero
María Ercibengoa
Marina Fernández
Isabel Fradejas
Oscar Fraile
María José Goyanes
Ainhoa Gutiérrez
José Israel López
Concha López
Ana Isabel López-Calleja
Ramiro López-Medrano
Patricia Muñoz
Adriana María Ortega
Marina Oviaño
Javier Peman
María Rodríguez-Mayo
Alba Ruiz
Alexander Tristancho
Belén Rodríguez-Sánchez
author_facet David Rodriguez-Temporal
Daniel Adrados
Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo
Miriam Alkorta
Ana Candela
Andrés Canut
Carmen Castro
Carlos Gustavo Cilla
Juan de Dios Caballero
María Ercibengoa
Marina Fernández
Isabel Fradejas
Oscar Fraile
María José Goyanes
Ainhoa Gutiérrez
José Israel López
Concha López
Ana Isabel López-Calleja
Ramiro López-Medrano
Patricia Muñoz
Adriana María Ortega
Marina Oviaño
Javier Peman
María Rodríguez-Mayo
Alba Ruiz
Alexander Tristancho
Belén Rodríguez-Sánchez
author_sort David Rodriguez-Temporal
collection DOAJ
description The identification of filamentous fungi by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI–TOF MS) represents a challenge due to their complex taxonomy and the lack of comprehensive databases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the current status of available MALDI–TOF MS databases for the identification of dermatophytes, including commercial, in-house, and web-based databases. We collected 289 dermatophyte strains from different centers and analyzed them using four databases and a combination of them. The combination of commercial and in-house databases was shown to improve the identification rate and accuracy at the species level. For <i>Trichophyton rubrum</i>, the concordance among all databases was above 90.0%. For the <i>T. mentagrophytes</i> group, correct identification at the species level ranged from 30.0 to 78.9%, depending on the database, and showed very low agreement among them. The addition of the novel species <i>T. japonicum</i> to our in-house database resulted in the successful identification of this species. On the other hand, <i>T. interdigitale</i> and <i>T. tonsurans</i> were the species most frequently misidentified by MALDI–TOF MS. Through deep spectra analysis of both species, up to 29 protein peaks were found to be suitable for their differentiation, demonstrating the potential of peak analysis in differentiating closely related species. In conclusion, improvements of the databases with new strains resulted in increased identification accuracy at the species level. This, combined with peak analysis, could improve the overall identification of dermatophytes by MALDI–TOF MS in clinical laboratories.
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spelling doaj-art-bb0f4fcde1714ba0810db83d017594bc2025-08-20T02:33:50ZengMDPI AGJournal of Fungi2309-608X2025-05-0111535610.3390/jof11050356Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte SpeciesDavid Rodriguez-Temporal0Daniel Adrados1Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo2Miriam Alkorta3Ana Candela4Andrés Canut5Carmen Castro6Carlos Gustavo Cilla7Juan de Dios Caballero8María Ercibengoa9Marina Fernández10Isabel Fradejas11Oscar Fraile12María José Goyanes13Ainhoa Gutiérrez14José Israel López15Concha López16Ana Isabel López-Calleja17Ramiro López-Medrano18Patricia Muñoz19Adriana María Ortega20Marina Oviaño21Javier Peman22María Rodríguez-Mayo23Alba Ruiz24Alexander Tristancho25Belén Rodríguez-Sánchez26Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Department, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, 28007 Madrid, SpainMicrobiology Department, Complejo Hospitalario Insular-Las Palmas, 35016 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainMycology Reference Laboratory, National Center for Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28222 Madrid, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Donostia, 20014 Donostia, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario Lucus Augusti, 27003 Lugo, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Álava, 01009 Álava, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Valme, 41014 Sevilla, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Donostia, 20014 Donostia, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal, 28034 Madrid, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Donostia, 20014 Donostia, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Álava, 01009 Álava, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón, 28922 Alcorcón, SpainMicrobiology Department, Complejo Asistencial de Ávila, 05071 Ávila, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón, 28922 Alcorcón, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario La Princesa, 28006 Madrid, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitario de Álava, 01009 Álava, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, 50009 Zaragoza, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, 50009 Zaragoza, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Complejo Asistencial Universitario de León, 24008 León, SpainClinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Department, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, 28007 Madrid, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón, 28922 Alcorcón, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario A Coruña, 15006 A Coruña, SpainUnidad de Micología Médica, Hospital Universitario La Fe, 46026 Valencia, SpainClinical Microbiology Department, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario A Coruña, 15006 A Coruña, SpainUnidad de Micología Médica, Hospital Universitario La Fe, 46026 Valencia, SpainMicrobiology Department, Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, 50009 Zaragoza, SpainClinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Department, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, 28007 Madrid, SpainThe identification of filamentous fungi by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI–TOF MS) represents a challenge due to their complex taxonomy and the lack of comprehensive databases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the current status of available MALDI–TOF MS databases for the identification of dermatophytes, including commercial, in-house, and web-based databases. We collected 289 dermatophyte strains from different centers and analyzed them using four databases and a combination of them. The combination of commercial and in-house databases was shown to improve the identification rate and accuracy at the species level. For <i>Trichophyton rubrum</i>, the concordance among all databases was above 90.0%. For the <i>T. mentagrophytes</i> group, correct identification at the species level ranged from 30.0 to 78.9%, depending on the database, and showed very low agreement among them. The addition of the novel species <i>T. japonicum</i> to our in-house database resulted in the successful identification of this species. On the other hand, <i>T. interdigitale</i> and <i>T. tonsurans</i> were the species most frequently misidentified by MALDI–TOF MS. Through deep spectra analysis of both species, up to 29 protein peaks were found to be suitable for their differentiation, demonstrating the potential of peak analysis in differentiating closely related species. In conclusion, improvements of the databases with new strains resulted in increased identification accuracy at the species level. This, combined with peak analysis, could improve the overall identification of dermatophytes by MALDI–TOF MS in clinical laboratories.https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/11/5/356dermatophytesfilamentous fungiMALDI–TOF MSidentification
spellingShingle David Rodriguez-Temporal
Daniel Adrados
Ana Alastruey-Izquierdo
Miriam Alkorta
Ana Candela
Andrés Canut
Carmen Castro
Carlos Gustavo Cilla
Juan de Dios Caballero
María Ercibengoa
Marina Fernández
Isabel Fradejas
Oscar Fraile
María José Goyanes
Ainhoa Gutiérrez
José Israel López
Concha López
Ana Isabel López-Calleja
Ramiro López-Medrano
Patricia Muñoz
Adriana María Ortega
Marina Oviaño
Javier Peman
María Rodríguez-Mayo
Alba Ruiz
Alexander Tristancho
Belén Rodríguez-Sánchez
Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
Journal of Fungi
dermatophytes
filamentous fungi
MALDI–TOF MS
identification
title Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
title_full Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
title_fullStr Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
title_full_unstemmed Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
title_short Current Performance of MALDI–TOF Mass Spectrometry Databases for the Identification of Dermatophyte Species
title_sort current performance of maldi tof mass spectrometry databases for the identification of dermatophyte species
topic dermatophytes
filamentous fungi
MALDI–TOF MS
identification
url https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/11/5/356
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