## 4 Discussion
These fungi are usually found in the ecosystems near the habitats of animals and humans due to keratin degradation capabilities [74; 75; 76]. In this study, four species of geophilic dermatophytes were cultivated and identified, i.e., _Arthroderma uncinatum_, _Keratinophyton wagnerii_, _Nannizzia gypyea_, and _Paraplypton cookei_. Although infections by geophilic species are less common than those caused by anthropophilic and zoophilic species, the inflammatory response is usually more severe, and the duration of infection is generally shorter. Most likely, host-fungal adaptation results in a weakened immune response and a prolonged replication period. The reasoning behind this phenomenon is justified by the fact that geophiles are not adapted to the human host equivalently to anthropophilic species [77; 78]. _Arthroderma uncinatum_ (formerly _Trichophyton ajeloi_) was the only species isolated from the genus _Arthroderma_. It was found in 9 out of 12 presented sites. Widespread occurrence of _A. uncinatum_ was also recorded in another Polish city during a study of keratinophilic fungal biodiversity in different soil types in Lublin. _Arthroderma uncinatum_ was one of the four most frequently isolated fungi and the second most frequently isolated geophilic dermatophyte in that study [79; 80; 81; 82; 83; 84]. Similar results were obtained by [PERSON] and [PERSON] in a study of the pathogenicity of keratinophilic soil fungi against _Culex quinugfasciatus_ mosquito larvae. At that time, _A. uncinatum_ was also the only species isolated within the genus _Arthroderma_. Although it was not the most commonly isolated fungus, it was the most effective against mosquito larvae [85]. _Keratinophyton wagnerii_ was also commonly found in the samples. This was the only fungus of the genus _Keratinophyton_ that we isolated. It was first described by [PERSON] et al. [29] who observed that the newly described fungi had keratinocyte properties and the ability to degrade human hair. [PERSON] et al. [86] also isolated _K. wagnerii_ in their speleomycological study of three caves in Slovakia in 2022. _Nannizzia sypsea_ (formerly _Microsporum sypseum_) was isolated in 7 of the 12 sites tested. This fungus is one of the better-known representatives of the geophilic dermatophytes. _Nannizzia sypsea_ is a cosmopolitan fungus, and it hardly ever causes disease in humans [87]. Scientists from Slovenia conducted a study over a period of 15 years (2000-2015). A total of 14,703 dermatophyte-positive cultures were isolated during the research period, and _N. sypsea_ accounted for 1.5% of them. Almost 40% of those infected were children under the age of nine. It was also found that women were more likely to be infected than men in every age group [88]. Although dermatoses caused by _N. sypsea_ represent only a small part of all dermatophyte mycoses, there are many reports of its isolation from patients in different regions of the world. [PERSON] and colleagues described an interesting case of dermatopytosis of the smooth skin (_tinea corporis_) in a 22-year-old woman from the Madagascar region. A detailed medical history revealed that she probably contracted the infection through contact with free-living cats [89]. Infection with _N. sypsea_ by contact with an infected animal has also been observed in a 2-year-old boy from Italy with signs of infection on the scalp [90]. In contrast, geophyte dermatophyte infections linked to direct contact with the soil were observed in a study conducted in eastern Poland among farmers and non-farmers with suspected fungal infections of the skin or its appendages. It should be emphasized, however, that no significant differences in infection were found between farmers and non-farmers, and the identified geophilic fungi were responsible for superficial mycoosis and/or onychomycosis [91]. In this study, the presence of _Paraphyton cookei_ was observed at one of the sites. _Paraphyton cookei_ exhibits hair decomposition and a positive effect in the in vitro hair perforation test, as observed by [PERSON] et al.