Trichophyton erinacei is a main cause of dermatophytosis in hedgehogs and is increasingly reported from human infections worldwide. This pathogen was originally described in the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) but is also frequently found in the African four-toed hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris), a popular pet animal worldwide. Little is known about the taxonomy and population genetics of this pathogen despite its increasing importance in clinical practice. Notably, whether there are different populations or even cryptic species associated with different hosts or geographic regions is not known. To answer these questions, we collected 161 isolates, performed phylogenetic and population-genetic analyses, determined mating-type, and characterised morphology and physiology. Multigene phylogeny and microsatellite analysis supported T. erinacei as a monophyletic species, in contrast to highly incongruent single-gene phylogenies. Two main subpopulations, one specific mainly to Atelerix and second to Erinaceus hosts, were identified inside T. erinacei, and slight differences in the size of microconidia and antifungal susceptibilities were observed among them. Although the process of speciation into two lineages is ongoing in T. erinacei, there is still gene flow between these populations. Thus, we present T. erinacei as a single species, with notable intraspecies variability in genotype and phenotype. The data from wild hedgehogs indicated that sexual reproduction in T. erinacei and de novo infection of hedgehogs from soil are probably rare events and that clonal horizontal spread strongly dominates. The molecular typing approach used in this study represents a suitable tool for further epidemiological surveillance of this emerging pathogen in both animals and humans. The results of this study also highlighted the need to use a multigene phylogeny ideally in combination with other independent molecular markers to understand the species boundaries of dermatophytes. Citation: Čmoková A, Kolařík M, Guillot J, et al. 2022. Host-driven subspeciation in the hedgehog fungus, Trichophyton erinacei, an emerging cause of human dermatophytosis. Persoonia 48: 203-218. https://doi.org/10.3767/persoonia.2022.48.06.

Department of Botany Faculty of Science Charles University Prague Czech Republic

Department of Dermatology and Venereology 1st Faculty of Medicine Charles University and General University Hospital Prague Prague Czech Republic

Department of Dermatology Parasitology Mycology Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire Agroalimentaire et de l'Alimentation Oniris Nantes France

Department of Microbiology Palacký University and University hospital Olomouc Czech Republic

Department of Veterinary Sciences University of Turin Turin Italy

Dynamyc Research Group EA 7380 Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort UPEC USC ANSES Maisons Alfort France

Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort Biopole Alfort Service de Parasitologie Mycologie Maisons Alfort France

Institute of Laboratory Medicine Faculty of Medicine University of Ostrava Ostrava Czech Republic

Laboratory of Fungal Genetics and Metabolism Institute of Microbiology Czech Academy of Sciences Prague Czech Republic

Laboratory of Medical Microbiology Mölbis Germany

Laboratory of Medical Parasitology and Mycology Hospital České Budě jovice České Budějovice Czech Republic

Laboratory of Mycology Department of Medical Microbiology Prague and Kladno Prague Czech Republic

Medical Mycology Research Center Chiba University Chiba Japan

Pardubice Regional Hospital Pardubice Czech Republic

Public Health Institute in Ostrava Ostrava Czech Republic

Teikyo University Institute of Medical Mycology Tokyo Japan

Veterinary Mycology Group Department of Animal Health and Anatomy Autonomous University of Barcelona Barcelona Spain

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Resolving Phylogenetic Relationships Within the Trichophyton mentagrophytes Complex: A RADseq Genomic Approach Challenges Status of 'Terbinafine-Resistant' Trichophyton indotineae as Distinct Species

First Step on the Way to Identify Dermatophytes Using Odour Fingerprints

Defining the relationship between phylogeny, clinical manifestation, and phenotype for Trichophyton mentagrophytes/interdigitale complex; a literature review and taxonomic recommendations

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