Malassezia furfur (formerly known as Pityrosporum ovale in its hyphal form) is a species of yeast (a type of fungus) that is naturally found on the skin surfaces of humans and some other mammals. It is associated with a variety of dermatological conditions caused by fungal infections, notably seborrhoeic dermatitis and tinea versicolor. As an opportunistic pathogen, it has further been associated with dandruff, malassezia folliculitis, pityriasis versicolor (alba), and malassezia intertrigo, as well as catheter-related fungemia and pneumonia in patients receiving hematopoietic transplants. The fungus can also affect other animals, including dogs.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Malassezia furfur across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile4 classes
Simple indole alkaloids9
Carboline alkaloids5
Carbazole alkaloids3
Carbazole alkaloids $ Carboline alkaloids1
Documented compounds18 total
Compound
Class
Amount
Source
(2R)-2-hydroxy-3-(1H-indol-3-yl)propanoic acid
present
LOTUS
1,3-di(1H-indol-3-yl)propan-2-one
present
LOTUS
2,5-Furandione, 3,4-di-1H-indol-3-yl-
present
LOTUS
CID 101746397
present
LOTUS
Hydroxymethyl indol-3-yl ketone
present
LOTUS
Malasseziacitrin
present
LOTUS
Malassezialactic acid
present
LOTUS
Malasseziazole A
present
LOTUS
Malasseziazole B
present
LOTUS
Malasseziazole C
present
LOTUS
05DNA & barcoding56 specimens
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Malassezia furfur has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens56
Marker genes3
GenBank sequences9
eDNA detections58
Countries11
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
Each circle is a barcode variant; bigger = more specimens, colour = region. Lines join the most similar variants and the tick marks count the mutations between them — a tight cluster is one “dialect”, a long line a more divergent lineage. Click a circle to list its actual specimens.
EuropeN.AmericaS.AmericaOther
Marker genes sequenced
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★COI-5P★ITS928S-D1-D2
animal barcodefungal barcodemarker
Organelle genome
Besides the big genome in the nucleus, cells carry a small, circular loop of DNA inside the cell's energy factories — the mitochondria. It is inherited almost only from the mother and is a leftover from ancient bacteria that moved into the cell. The mitochondrial markers above (ND*, COX, CYTB…) are read from exactly this loop. Outer ring = one strand, inner ring = the other.
▸ Tap any coloured segment — or a gene chip — to see what it is
◖ violet arc = the COI-5P barcode — the ~650 bp read used to ID this species
Pick a coloured segment on the ring — or a gene chip — to read what that gene does.
protein-codingrRNAtRNA
06Genome at a glanceNCBI
The complete instruction manualMalassezia furfur carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Genome sizehow big the whole instruction manual is
Genome size≈8 268 083 bp assembly estimate
Measured in base pairs (bp) — the individual letters of DNA (human ≈ 3.2 Gb, a bacterium a few million). The chart places this genome on a logarithmic scale — each step to the right is ten times bigger — among reference organisms. Across species a bigger genome loosely tracks with larger cells, slower growth and lower-energy lifestyles (powered flight favours small genomes) — yet it does not imply more genes or a more advanced organism (the long-standing C-value paradox).
BACTERIUM Carsonella ruddii0.00016 Gb
THIS GENOME Malassezia furfur0.0083 Gb
FUNGUS0.04 Gb
INSECT0.25 Gb
HUMAN3.2 Gb
WHEAT17 Gb
FERN Tmesipteris160.45 Gb
Sequencing statusassembly quality — how far to trust these numbers
Assembly level tells you how finished the sequence is — from fragmented contigs, through scaffolds, up to a full chromosome-level assembly. BUSCO % estimates completeness: the share of genes expected to be present that were actually found. These describe the data quality, not the organism.
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy100% within 1 km
≤100 m 1
1 georeferenced
Open the mapobservation + sensor1
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy100% within 1 km
≤100 m 1
1 georeferenced · 31 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence32
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
Coordinate accuracy
no georeferenced coordinates · 40 records without
Open the mapnot free-living40
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
09Environmental DNA58 detections
Where the DNA of Malassezia furfur was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found58
Studies independent surveys4
Countries1
Verifiable raw sequence linked2
Signal confidence: moderateweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 58 detections have coordinates
Open the map1 country0
humananimalriver mouth [ENVO:00000386]
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median21.7 °C 21.7–21.7
Seasonal swing summer↔winter11.7 °C
Max temp (day)22.9 °C
Min temp (night)19.8 °C
Precipitation183 mm/mo
Air humidity67.1 %
Vapour deficit851 Pa
Cloud cover51.2 %
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 1 detection point · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation11 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility73 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI58 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics56 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗