International Journal of Life Sciences International Peer Reviewed Open Access Refereed Journal Special Issue A 9: January 2018 UGC Approved Journal No 48951 Original Article Open Access National Conference on “Emerging Trends in Mycotechnology” (NCETM-2018) | 79 Isolation and Characterization of dandruff causing fungi & effect of some plant extracts on it Nirmalkar Vaishali* 1 and Randhir Nayan 2 1 K.M.E Society’s G. M. Momin Women’s College, Bhiwandi, Maharashtra 2 M.V.P Samaj’s KTHM College, Nashik, Maharashtra *corresponding author, email: vaishu_p2025@yahoo.co.in Manuscript details: ABSTRACT Available online on http://www.ijlsci.in ISSN: 2320-964X (Online) ISSN: 2320-7817 (Print) Editor: Dr. Arvind Chavhan Cite this article as: Nirmalkar Vaishali and Randhir Nayan (2018) Isolation and Characterization of dandruff causing fungi & effect of some plant extracts on it, Int. J. of. Life Sciences, Special Issue, A9: 79-83. Copyright: © Author, This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial - No Derives License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. Yeast called Malassezia is a causative agent of Seborrheic dermatitis or dandruff. It was isolated from the scalp of human individuals and investigated further. Suitable biochemical tests were performed for the characterization of the organism focusing on its ability to produce Catalase, Urease, utilization of tweens, liquefaction of gelatin and assimilation of different carbohydrates. The organism after its isolation and characterization was further investigated for its susceptibility towards 20 different plant extracts. Keywords: Seborrheic dermatitis, Malasezzia, mDixons agar, antifungal activity, medicinal plants. INTRODUCTION Fungi are ancient troublemakers, but the suspicion that they might cause disease is about 100 years old. Seborrheic dermatitis /dandruff is a condition where flaky skin of scalp sheds off. Louis Charles Malassez first saw yeast like substance lurking in the scales of a patient with Seborrheic dermatitis. Malassezia furfur (Pitryosporum ovale), is the fungus which plays an important role in Seborrhoeic dermatitis (Faergemann et al., 1996). The genus Malassezia comprises lipophilic yeasts found in the normal flora of human skin and other mammals. These yeasts were described as being associated with Pityriasis Versicolor (PV) lesions. The taxonomy and nomenclature of the genus Malassezia was controversial for many decades. Nine of the 13 species within the genus, M. furfur, M. sympodialis, M. globosa, M. restricta, M. slooffiae, M. obtusa, M. dermatis, M. japonica, and M. yamatoensis, are associated with normal human flora and pathologies. Four species, M. pachydermatis, M. nana, M. equina, and M. caprae, are associated with