Taxonomy of Pathogenic Yeasts Candida, Cryptococcus, Malassezia, and Trichosporon: Current Status, Future Perspectives, and Proposal for Transfer of Six Candida Species to the Genus Nakaseomyces

Abstract

This review describes the changes in yeast species names in the previous decade. Several yeast species have been reclassified to accommodate the “One fungus = One name”(1F=1N) principle of the Code. As the names of medically important yeasts have also been reviewed and revised, details of the genera Candida, Cryptococcus, Malassezia, and Trichosporon are described in Section 3, along with the history of name changes. Since the phylogenetic positions of Candida species in several clades have not been clarified, revision of this species has not been completed. Among the species that remain unrevised despite their importance in the medical field, we propose the transfer of six Candida species to be reclassified in the Nakaseomyces clade, including Nakaseomyces glabratus and Nakaseomyces nivalensis.