In this section
@article{Wunderlich:2026:10.1128/spectrum.00669-26,
author = {Wunderlich, G and Butterly, S and Johnson, M and Tatian, A and Baum, J},
doi = {10.1128/spectrum.00669-26},
journal = {Microbiol Spectr},
title = {Development of a rapid LAMP assay toward point-of-care detection of dermatophyte infections and antifungal resistance.},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.00669-26},
year = {2026}
}
TY - JOUR
AB - UNLABELLED: Dermatophytosis is a common fungal infection affecting up to 25% of the global population. Increasing antifungal resistance and limited access to timely diagnostics hamper effective management, particularly in resource-limited settings. There is therefore an urgent need for reliable point-of-care diagnostics to guide treatment and support antifungal stewardship. Here, we report the development and validation of molecular assays based on loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) for rapid identification of dermatophytes and antifungal resistance-associated alleles. For taxonomic identification, we developed conventional LAMP assays targeting pan-dermatophytes, Microsporum spp., Trichophyton rubrum complex, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes complex. For detection of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with terbinafine resistance, we developed competitive SNP-based LAMP (sbLAMP) assays using unmodified self-stabilizing (USS) primers to differentiate specific from non-specific amplification. At 65°C, pan-dermatophyte, Microsporum spp., T. rubrum complex, and T. mentagrophytes complex samples were detected in less than 9 min of assay start, with Microsporum detection possible in less than 6 min. Limits of detection were 10 gene copies per reaction for T. mentagrophytes and 100-1,000 gene copies per reaction for the remaining assays. Using available clinical isolates, assays demonstrated sensitive and specific detection and were compatible with a simple colorimetric readout. For resistance detection, optimized primers validated wild-type allelic status of T. rubrum isolates, showing delayed amplification in mutant assays. Together, these assays show a means by which taxonomic identification and allele-specific resistance detection of dermatophyte infections might be possible within a point-of-care application. Such an application could support targeted treatment in remote or resource-limited settings that will also aid in the stewardship of
AU - Wunderlich,G
AU - Butterly,S
AU - Johnson,M
AU - Tatian,A
AU - Baum,J
DO - 10.1128/spectrum.00669-26
PY - 2026///
TI - Development of a rapid LAMP assay toward point-of-care detection of dermatophyte infections and antifungal resistance.
T2 - Microbiol Spectr
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.00669-26
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/42782140
ER -