{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"institution":[{"name":"bioRxiv"}],"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,23]],"date-time":"2026-07-23T00:05:27Z","timestamp":1784765127062,"version":"3.55.0"},"posted":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,18]]},"group-title":"Microbiology","reference-count":46,"publisher":"openRxiv","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,18]],"date-time":"2026-07-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1784332800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,18]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  The lipophilic yeast genus\n                  <jats:italic>Malassezia<\/jats:italic>\n                  dominates the human skin mycobiome and, while typically commensal, is associated with skin disorders in which hyphal cells are frequently observed. However, the mechanisms underlying hyphal differentiation and its contribution to pathogenesis remain poorly understood. Here, we show that hyphal growth in\n                  <jats:italic>Malassezia furfur<\/jats:italic>\n                  requires a complete mating-type system and is promoted by noncanonical reproductive interactions. Interspecific mating generates stable diploid hybrids with evidence of recombination, whereas intraspecific mating produces cell-fusion products that undergo recombination and haploidization, consistent with a parasexual cycle. Functional analyses reveal that the pheromone\/receptor (\n                  <jats:italic>P\/R<\/jats:italic>\n                  ) locus governs cell recognition and fusion, while the homeodomain (\n                  <jats:italic>HD<\/jats:italic>\n                  ) locus is required for hyphal development despite having lost canonical mating-type determination. Leveraging\n                  <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                  and\n                  <jats:italic>in vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                  skin models, we show that hyphal cells invade the epidermis more efficiently and elicit stronger inflammatory responses than yeast cells. Together, these findings link parasexual-like reproduction, mating-type loci function, and morphogenesis in\n                  <jats:italic>Malassezia<\/jats:italic>\n                  to pathogenic interactions with the host.\n                <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.64898\/2026.07.17.739196","type":"posted-content","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,19]],"date-time":"2026-07-19T17:40:22Z","timestamp":1784482822000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Host skin lipids trigger\n                  <i>MAT<\/i>\n                  -dependent mating, pathogenic hyphal growth, and parasexual reproduction of\n                  <i>Malassezia furfur<\/i>"],"prefix":"10.64898","author":[{"given":"Erica","family":"Patriarca","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Molise, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences, Campobasso, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bastien","family":"Tirtiaux","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Molise, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences, Campobasso, Italy"},{"name":"NAmur Research Institute for LIfe Sciences (NARILIS), Faculty of Medicine, University of Namur, Namur, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"M\u00e1rcia","family":"David-Palma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anna Floyd","family":"Averette","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eduardo","family":"Gushiken-Iba\u00f1ez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Section of Immunology at Vetsuisse Faculty and Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yves","family":"Poumay","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"NAmur Research Institute for LIfe Sciences (NARILIS), Faculty of Medicine, University of Namur, Namur, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Salom\u00e9","family":"Leibundgut-Landmann","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Section of Immunology at Vetsuisse Faculty and Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Switzerland"},{"name":"Medical Research Council Centre for Medical Mycology at the University of Exeter, Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Exeter, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Joseph","family":"Heitman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marco A.","family":"Coelho","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3278-8678","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giuseppe","family":"Ianiri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Molise, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences, Campobasso, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"54368","reference":[{"key":"2026072217000780000_2026.07.17.739196v1.1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Findley, K. et al. 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