Isolation and identification of keratinophilic fungi from garbage waste soils of Jharkhand region of India

Forty eight soil samples were collected from 12 garbage waste soils of Ranchi, Jharkhand and screened for presence of keratinophilic fungi using hair baiting techniques for isolation. Fungal growths appearing on the baits after two to four weeks of incubation at room temperature were microscopically examined and cultured on mycological media. Cultures were then identified on the basis of colonial and microscopic features. A total of 64 colonies of different keratinophilic fungi were isolated from 48 soil samples. The isolated keratinophilic fungi were classified into 10 species belonging to 7 genera. The isolated keratinophilic fungi were in the following order of dominance: Penicillium chrysogenum (15.62%), Aspergillus niger and Rhizopus stolonifer (14.06%), Trichoderma harzianum (12.50%), Fusariun oxysporum (10.94%), Aspergillus sp.1 (7.81%), Aspergillus flavus and Curvularia lunata (5.97%), Penicillium sp. (5.81%) & Chrysosporium sp. (4.69%).