Xanthomegnin detection does not discriminate between Trichophyton rubrum and T. mentagrophytes complexes

•Xanthomegnin was identified in clinical samples and strains of the T. rubrum complex.•This study indicates that xanthomegnin activity is not a unique characteristic of the T. rubrum complex.•Two A. vanbreuseghemii and 1 T. interdigitale reference strains yielded xanthomegnin activity comparable to T. rubrum.•Xanthomegnin activity did not differ according to the origin of the clinical samples or patient demographic information.

Here, we aimed to discriminate the Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton mentagrophytes complexes, via detection of xanthomegnin using HPLC. We concluded that it is not a reliable technique for discriminating the two complexes, because strains belonging to both T. rubrum and T. mentagrophytes complexes displayed xanthomegnin activity.